Only the Beginning
by miyukousawa
Summary: The saddest of people always tend to smile the brightest. (MiyuSawa) [ TRIGGER WARNING ]
1. Chapter 1: A Revealed Secret

**Hello there, fellow stranger! :D Call me Katie, please~ ^^**

**Welcome, make yourself comfortable, and prepare for a feels trip! **

**Let me just get this out of the way before we begin...this story contains: Boys Love, Manga spoilers, self-harm, depression, attempted suicide, characters being ooc, and a dosage of feels. **

**This fic will have some happy moments, but if you're triggered by anything listed above, this may not be the best fic for you to read. **

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: A Revealed Secret<strong>

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><p>It was a humid summer day; the late July sky was the perfect shade of cerulean blue, and there wasn't a single puffy, white cloud in the sky to be seen for miles. The harsh rays from the sun beat down upon the Seido baseball team members as they had their afternoon practice.<p>

Standing in the bullpen, Eijun wiped away the sweat that had been accumulating on his brow from practicing in the sun for so long. Ditching the blue compression shirt, he had thrown on his white, loose fitting, practice jersey without an undershirt, knowing it'd only make him sweat more if he did wear one.

It was a scorcher outside, the temperature nearly raking up to the triple digits, so coach Kataoka wasn't making them do too much practice; he didn't want any of them to have a heatstroke or get dehydrated. Though, of all of the exhausted, panting, sweaty players that made up the Seido baseball team, one player stood out among them all.

Miyuki was the only one who wore long sleeves to every practice, no matter how hot it was when they practiced outside under the hot sun, while everyone else wore either their Seido t-shirts or white, practice jerseys without the blue, long sleeved, compression shirt beneath it. When questioned about it, he simply would shrug it off with a goofy grin and resume his task.

Eijun stopped once more to wipe away the bead of sweat that had started to trickle down his face, making Chris wait on him once again. Both of them were starting to feel the burn of summer more and more as they practiced in the bullpen together, getting more than just a summer tan; Eijun had been told multiple times to wear sunscreen outside to protect his skin from getting an awful sunburn. As he finished wiping off his brow of the last beads of sweat, he'd cast his gaze over towards Miyuki to see how the other catcher was holding up in the heat. Eijun could only gape as he looked over at the other catcher, horrified at his choice of clothing; who in their right mind would wear long-sleeves in the middle of a summer heatwave?

"How can he wear _that_ in this heat!? He's making _me_ hot just looking at him!" Eijun exclaimed, making Chris smile slightly and shake his head in a "what am I gonna do with you" manner at the younger pitcher's outburst. Chris had to admit, though, he himself was a bit curious on why Miyuki chose to wear long sleeves to practice when it was extremely hot out and everyone else favored their lose fitting, short sleeved shirts.

"Miyuki?" Chris called out as he turned his head towards the second year catcher crouching down beside him. Miyuki, who had been busy catching for Kawakami when he heard Chris call for him, glanced over at the third year catcher, wondering what he wanted from him. "Hmmm? What is it, senpai?" He asked, throwing the ball back to Kawakami, who hadn't even noticed that it had been tossed back to him; Eijun's outburst had startled him slightly and he'd turned in the direction of the other pitcher, as if it were a reflex.

"Sawamura wants to know if you're feeling warm wearing that?" The flash of panic that arose on Miyuki's face wasn't hard to miss, though, he hastily composed himself as he answered Chris' question with a forced smile on his face. "No. I'm fine." Chris raised a brow at Miyuki's answer doubtfully, but decided not to pry in his personal life; it was really none of his business to question what the other catcher wore to practice. Maybe in the middle of the winter, when everything was white and the land was frozen, Eijun would call him up to say that he'd seen the bespectacled catcher wearing a t-shirt at practice.

Chris turned his attention back to where Eijun was, only to find that the pitcher had taken to lying on the cool ground, limbs sprawled out like a starfish, eyes closed, muttering about how hot it was to be practicing outside. Chris chuckled lightly at the sight of the pitcher sprawled out in the ground and decided that the pitcher had done enough practicing for one day.

As Chris walked over to help the pitcher on the ground up, he couldn't help but notice a few orange band-aids covering Miyuki's left wrist. "Sawamura?" Eijun cracked open an eye at the sound of his favorite senpai's deep voice calling out his name. "Hmm? What is it, Chris-senpai?" Chris turned back to where Miyuki was, frowning a bit as he wondered what had happened to him. Did something happen to the catcher when he was around? Surely, Miyuki wasn't that careless...was he? "Did Miyuki get hurt during practice or a game?" Eijun sat up and shrugged his shoulders, unable to answer Chris' question.

He never paid much attention to the cynical catcher when they weren't practicing together, and even if he did, he didn't ogle him like the catcher's fans did. Ever since the day he'd been learned the truth about Chris, he'd stopped chasing after Miyuki to be his catcher and had started to focus more on the older male, almost as if he were some sort of God-like figure. "I dunno. I'll have to ask Furuya about it." Eijun murmured as he graciously accepted the hand held out for him, allowing himself to be pulled up by Chris.

Wondering about Chris' shoulder, and noting that he'd seen him leave practice less often than he used to for rehabilitation, he asked,"Ah, Chris-senpai, how's your shoulder doing!?" The catcher seemed surprised by Eijun's question at first, but smiled down at him thoughtfully, ruffling his soft, brown hair with a large, gentle hand. "It's doing fine, Sawamura."

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><p>After he and Chris had departed ways; Eijun heading towards the dugout to cool off and Chris to go find and talk to Kataoka about something important, he'd smiled brightly as he waved his goodbye to the catcher, thanking him loudly for catching his pitches.<p>

As soon as Eijun reached the dugout, he quickly collapsed down onto the bench besides Furuya, who had retreated to the cool shade of the dugout after only two hours of practice had gone by, unable to withstand the Tokyo heat."It's hot..." Furuya mumbled to Eijun, leaning back to let the back of his head against the cool wall of the dugout. Furuya and the Tokyo heat waves were never good combos; his body reacted to the heat by making him sweat more than he ever would back home in Hokkaido, and it always left him feeling rather sluggish as the sun continued to torment him as he worked on his stamina-roll.

Eijun groaned loudly as he pulled at the collar of his white jersey with the big sweat stains on it, trying to cool off while he sat in the shade of the dugout. "Boss is trying to kill us, Furuya!" Both pitchers were extremely sweaty from practicing underneath the blazing sun for hours, and they probably reeked like hell. He was tempted to take off his jersey, but was unsure if Kataoka was secretly watching them from afar, as if he were some sort of stalker.

_'Ugh, screw what Boss thinks! I'm hot, smelly, and sweaty, so this jersey's coming off!'_ Eijun thought to himself as he pulled his jersey over his head, balling it up and setting it beside him on the bench. While it didn't offer much coolness, he was simply glad that he wasn't in a sweat drenched jersey anymore.

Haruichi came to the dugout a few minutes later and was slightly taken aback at the sight of Eijun being shirtless. Feeling his face heat up slightly, he asked,"Eijun-kun...why are you shirtless?" Furuya's ears perked up; he wasn't liking the fact that _his_ boyfriend was looking at _Eijun's_ body. While he knew Haruichi loved both him and Eijun equally, Haruichi was dating _him, _not_ Eijun_.

"It's hot, Harucchi." Eijun's answered simply as he pointed to the balled up jersey next to him with a look of revolt on his face. Haruichi noticed Furuya glaring over at Eijun and chuckled lightly as he patted the top of his boyfriend's head. "Satoru-kun, don't be jealous. You know just as well as I do that you're the only one that I'm all eyes for." Haruichi reassured him, squeezing his tiny body into the empty spot between the two pitchers and watched as more of the upperclassmen, who were still practicing on the field, decided to discard of their shirts as well, almost as if Eijun had set off a chain reaction.

Suddenly remembering Chris' question, Eijun nudged the other pitcher with his elbow in the side, drawing over his attention. "Furuya, did Miyuki get hurt or anything during practice or a game?" Furuya raised a brow at the other's question, but he couldn't ever recall a time where he'd seen the catcher getting hurt before. If so, it wasn't while he was around him. They may practice together, but Furuya hardly ever saw him outside of practice. He usually just tag along with Eijun and Haruichi after practice ended. "No. Why?"

Eijun shrugged, unsure of why he was even asking about Miyuki in the first place; the damn catcher worked at his nerves constantly and eyed him weird at times and whenever they accidentally made eye contact, he'd found it to be rather peculiar that the other would glance away from him, almost as if he were a child who'd been caught with their hand in the cookie jar. "Chris-senpai asked me."

Haruichi, who had been listening in on their conversation silently, decided to join in with an observation that he'd made about Miyuki from the past few months he'd been at Seido. "If you think about it, Miyuki-senpai _only_ wears long-sleeved shirts. Satoru-kun, has he always done this?" Furuya could indeed affirm that. Back when he had been placed in the first string and had been assigned to Miyuki, the catcher had worn _nothing_ but long sleeved shirts, and would tend to avoid the topic of being hot or why he wore them if the pitcher inquired. It made Furuya sweat even more just by thinking about why someone would wear long-sleeved shirts in the summer.

"Miyuki-senpai is grouchy, too." Furuya murmured, making a face as he thought of how terrible their practice had gone that day. Eijun nodded his head in agreement, a scowl prominent on his face as he glared over in the direction of where the catcher in the bullpen was, catching Kawakami's pitches. "That useless catcher with the goggles had some damn nerve to get mad and yell at me."

Haruichi let out half a chortle as he turned his head over towards Eijun. "What did you do this time, Eijun-kun?" It wasn't that big of a deal to hear about Miyuki yelling at Eijun anymore; they always said, or did, something to annoy the other. They bickered with each other constantly; Miyuki teasing Eijun and Eijun yelling random insults that first came to his mind back at Miyuki.

Eijun scowled and huffed a bit, ticked off that Haruichi would assume he'd done something wrong to get on the catcher's nerves when it was on the contrary. "Absolutely nothing! He just got mad at me and was all,_"Stop doing that, Sawamura." _Stop doing what!? Stupid, shitty, four eyed catcher..."

Furuya added in as well with,"When I was pitching to Miyuki-senpai, he wasn't paying attention, so the ball went past him more than just one time. He got mad at me and said,_"You can't play baseball by yourself, Furuya. How many times have we gone over this?" _when I had done everything he'd asked me to do." H'ed mumbled, aggravated by the catchers words.

At first, it had been Furuya practicing with Miyuki, but due to the moody catcher getting aggravated at him over nothing and the sun beating down upon him, he'd decided to just call it a day. Eijun had seized this opportunity to ditch bunting practice so he could go practice with Miyuki; not even two minutes had passed them by, yet the catcher had decided to stop practice and lecture him about something completely stupid, making Eijun grow impatient, he'd just wanted to pitch to Miyuki's mitt, not get an earful from him.

In the end, Eijun had ended up getting on his hands on and knees in the dirt, begging Chris, who'd dropped in to observe Eijun and Miyuki's practice, to catch for him. After he'd complained about Miyuki's nasty attitude to Chris, the catcher merely sighed and shook his head in defeat, knowing it was useless to back out once Eijun brought out the puppy eyes, so he'd told him that he'd go get his mitt from his room and that he'd be there soon. Poor Kawakami had been the only one left to deal with Miyuki alone since every other catcher on the whole team seemed to be busy catching for another pitcher on the second or third string, or practicing their batting skills.

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><p>As a shirtless Kuramochi walked back to the dugout, an arm slung passionately around Ryousuke's shoulders, he noticed how most of the first years in the dugout were eyeing Miyuki, waiting to see if he, too, would take off his shirt.<p>

Kuramochi grinned mischievously and leaned his head down a bit to look at Ryousuke. "Kyehaha, I'm totally gonna make a bet with the first years, Ryou-san!" Ryousuke peered up at the shortstop, a mischievous smirk growing on his face, obviously liking the direction where their conversation was headed. "Oh, what about, Youichi?"

Kuramochi pointed over towards the bullpen where Miyuki was busy catching for Kawakami. He had just come up with the best bet yet. If it all went well, he'd be one rich guy by the end of practice. "If Miyuki takes off his shirt, then I have to pay each of the first years five bucks each; if he doesn't, then they each owe me five bucks!" Ryousuke smirked as he looked over at the unsuspecting first years. "Good idea, Youichi. When you win, let me know."

Ryousuke would have stuck around to see the miserable looks on the first years faces as they lost five bucks to his boyfriend, but his clothes were completely sweat drenched. His shirt stuck to his tiny frame like an extra layer of skin, and he knew that he stunk, not as bad as Kuramochi did, but he still wanted to freshen up before the others.

With a smug look on his face, Kuramochi sauntered towards the dugout, eyeing the group of first years with great determination on his face. "Kyehaha, let's start up a betting pool, guys!" Everyone seemed interested - minus Haruichi and Furuya, who weren't into betting money - gathering around the shortstop who held an enormous shit-eating grin on his face. "If Miyuki takes off his shirt, I owe you all five bucks, but if he doesn't, then each one of you owes me five bucks!"

Everyone agreed without hesitation and eyed the catcher carefully.

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><p>In the end, Kuramochi was one lucky guy. He laughed wickedly as he counted out all of the money that he'd just won from all of the first years who'd lost the bet to him. He had been debating all month long whether he should buy a new game or go somewhere nice with Ryousuke for their seven month anniversary as a couple together. Now, he wouldn't have to chose; he had enough money to do whatever the hell he <em>pleased<em>.

Miyuki, who had just finished up catching for a now petrified Kawakami, looked over at a suspiciously rich Kuramochi, who was still counting out money with a shit-eating grin on his face, and the depressing looks of the first years, who were all broke, wondering what he'd missed out on.

"What happened guys?" Everyone looked over at Kuramochi for an explanation as to why things looked the way they did. The shortstop simply replied back with,"We had a betting pool." Miyuki looked offended as he took off his helmet, letting his long bangs fall freely across his face as he glared at Kuramochi harshly with a scowl on his face. "You had a betting pool without me!?"

Kuramochi smirked at him and nodded, pocketing the money in his pants. He made a mental note to himself that he'd always make bets with the first years; they had to hand over cash if they lost.

"What was the betting pool on?" Everyone paused in their actions and conversations and, once again, looked over at Kuramochi, who had now fallen silent, for an explanation. Miyuki may be his best friend, but he wasn't going to spill the beans on their bet and have the catcher get pissed off at him. That was what they had pitchers for.

"If boss would remove his shirt or not!"

Everyone was surprised that Eijun had spoken up from his position in the back of the dugout. Miyuki cast his eyes over towards the shirtless pitcher, having nearly forgotten all about the betting pool as his light brown eyes scanned every inch of the pitcher's tan, well-toned body.

Kuramochi had been wanting to test out a new wrestling move on the pitcher that night after dinner, but since Eijun had just saved his ass from Miyuki's suspicions, he would save it for later. For now, he was going to have to kick the catcher's ass, because he was staring far _too_ hard at Eijun's body.

"I'm guessing it was Youichi who said that coach wouldn't remove his shirt and you all said he would?"

The first years merely cast their eyes downwards, embarrassed by their loss.

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><p>Eijun had just finished getting himself dressed in a red t-shirt and gray shorts in his dorm, feeling fresh from the bath he'd just took, when Takashima had come to retrieve him. "Sawamura-kun, come with me for a minute." The pitcher felt his entire face heat up in embarrassment as he thought of what he could be in trouble for. "Am I in trouble for removing my jersey!?" Takashima sighed as she tried to assure him that he wasn't in trouble. "No, you are a boy, after all, and the others also removed their shirts too, so that isn't it."<p>

Eijun was even more paranoid now. There were so many things that he could be in trouble for and possibly get booted off of the first string. "Is it because I decided to lay down instead of pitching!? Or because I wiped sweat off of my face more than I pitched!?" Takashima sighed once more, feeling a headache start to form. She wasn't very good at handling situations like this. Kataoka simply had informed her to fetch Eijun from his room and say very little about what it was for. "No, no. Just...come with me and everything will be explained to you."

Eijun followed Takashima out of his dorm and towards the school building, fearing the worst possibility that he was going to be kicked off of the team or demoted back down to the second string. Upon entering Kataoka's office, Eijun felt the seriousness of the situation wash over him like a douse of cold water.

"Sawamura, sit down." Eijun sat down on one of the leather seats in the office and nervously looked around the room. "S-so...what's wrong, boss? Ehehehe..." He was getting demoted, he was sure of it. Being on the first string was amazing; battling it out with Furuya over who could run the furthest and who could pitch the longest; Haruichi getting flustered up whenever Eijun cheered him on loudly from the dugout; Kuramochi's boisterous laugh; the third years inspiring everyone to work harder, and Miyuki. While the catcher often stared at him strangely and called him weird nicknames, Eijun would have to admit that he'd really miss being able to form a battery with Miyuki during games if he really was being demoted back down to the second string.

Kataoka began his discussion without further ado or any other words from the paranoid pitcher that sat across from him. "Don't call me boss. You are here, Sawamura, because we need your help in getting Miyuki to stop."

"Stop doing what?" the words left Eijun's mouth before he could hold himself back. What was so important that only he had been called in here for? Shouldn't it have been Kuramochi, Miyuki's best friend, or Chris, the guy everyone looks up too?

Wordlessly, Kataoka opened the top drawer of his desk, reached down into it, and pulled out a manila file folder. He slide it across the desk towards Eijun, who eyed it very carefully before he opened it with shaky hands.

Eijun could only stare in shock at what was in it...there was just no way...it was just impossible. Inside of the folder were pictures of a shirtless Miyuki sitting on one an examination table, looking as if he was in a doctor's office, it all seemed like it were a normal photo of him getting a check-up, but something wasn't right...from his wrists, all the way up to the beginning of his shoulder blades, both of Miyuki's arms were covered in scars of all shapes and sizes, some looking more fresh than others, and his expression looked like that of a cornered animal.

"Cutting himself has become a bad habit of Miyuki's," Kataoka explained as he watched the pitcher's face break out in a cold sweat. Eijun was in shock; how could someone so _perfect_ and so _handsome_ do this type of bodily mutilation to his own skin? Was this the major reason he kept wearing long sleeves, no matter what the temperature was like, whenever he was going to be around other people? If so, then...why? Why would someone as perfect and well-known as Miyuki do this to himself? He had no reason; he was popular with all genders, well known around the school, had been on the first-string since he was a first year, and even landed himself an article in the sports magazine Eijun had once read.

"From what I had heard from his roommate last year, Miyuki sneaks off to do this every single night, while everyone else is asleep."

Why did it have to be Miyuki of all people!? Sure, the catcher was twisted and malicious in many different ways, but still...this just doesn't seem real. Miyuki may annoy him half to death at times and the teasing could often go too far, but he could still be rather considerate when the time called for it. When Eijun had slide to home base during practice, skinning up his knees and elbows up pretty badly in the process, Miyuki had been the one to clean off he wounds, patch him up, and made him laugh by telling him an inside joke.

"I need someone to look out for him." Informed Kataoka, gaze so sharp it could cut anything in half. "And that someone is...me?" Eijun pointed towards himself, still not fully grasping the situation at hand. "He needs to spend time around someone he's fairly familiar with and who he can get along easy with." Eijun frowned, unsure if he could even do anything to help out. "But what if I can't do it? You know me...what if I mess up, boss!?" Was it really alright to entrust _him _of all people with such an important task? Surely there were others far more qualified than him.

"If you fail Sawamura, Miyuki may just end up killing himself."

He _really_ didn't want that to happen...

"What should I do, boss...?"

"Be with him when he needs you, keep sharp things away from him, and monitor him closely if he happens to have one in his hands. Stay by his side as much as you possibly can, Sawamura."

Eijun cocked his head to the side, unsure of how the whole satiation would work out since he was a first year and Miyuki was a second year. Their classes were on different floors and they lived in different dorms; Miyuki lived on the top floor, while he lived on the bottom. "Then what about classes and our sleeping arrangements?"

Something just didn't seem right here. He still had his classes to attend to and couldn't always be near Miyuki. There was a thing called "personal space", after all.

"Do I have to follow him around to every class? And if his roommates know about this, why not have _them_ help him, instead of me!?"

Kataoka sighed. "Miyuki's classmates will keep a close eye on him. He will not be allowed to leave during any of his classes unsupervised. And as for roommates, Miyuki doesn't have any at the moment, since Azuma graduated last year."

Eijun had a feeling Kataoka would say something he'd never expect to hear from anyone in all of his sixteen years of life.

"You will be rooming with Miyuki, until we can be sure that he is not a threat himself."

Rooming with Miyuki...?

"Do not let him inflict another wound on his skin, do you understood, Sawamura?"

Eijun could only nod, unprepared for the long road ahead of him.

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><p>Eijun had been forced to move in with Miyuki, much to the catcher's pleasure, and he wasn't fully convinced the catcher wouldn't pull anything funny on him while he slept. So far, the catcher had been <em>far<em> too nice to him and he was starting to feel a little paranoid that there'd a surprise attack would be pulled on him while he slept that night.

"I'm really glad that you're going to be rooming with me for a while, Sawamura!" Eijun scowled, not wanting to talk about the situation. It was all the catcher's fault, anyways. "Shut up! You better not pull any type of funny business on me when I'm asleep or I'll report you for sexual harassment!"

Miyuki smirked as he wrapped his arms around the smaller's waist, leaning his head towards Eijun's ear, whispering,"Now, now. I won't do anything like that. Not until you come to terms with your true feelings for me, Sawamura."

Eijun's entire face turned red as he tried to pry the catcher's strong arms off of his waist. "Like hell I'd ever fall for you!" Miyuki unwrapped his arms from the pitcher's waist, only to cross them against his chest and pouted childishly. "Aww, you're so mean, Sawamura. You know I was only joking...or _was_ I?"

Glared at Miyuki as he started to unpack his clothes from his bags, he hollered,"Shut up, Miyuki!" Miyuki smiled at him from his spot across the room, shaking his head. "Kazuya. I'd prefer you call me Kazuya, not Miyuki."

Since when were they ever on a first name basis?

"Since you're bound to end up calling me Kazuya later on, can I just call you Eijun, or do you prefer _Ei-chan_?"

Eijun could now understand just how much Kuramochi detested being near Kazuya; the catcher was annoying as hell.

"Eijun is fine..." He mumbled, causing Kazuya to grin in triumph as he sat down on his bed. Eijun had dreaded the silence in the room, knowing the catcher was thinking of something to strike up a conversation with him. "So...what made you decide to move into my room anyways?"

He was told specifically not to mention anything about the meeting to Kazuya, so he blurted out the only thing that came to his mind. "Kuramochi-senpai has a bad case of gas!" Eijun knew that he'd never get away with saying those words without it getting back to the shortstop. He knew that he'd be in for a hell of pain once Kuramochi heard about it from Kazuya.

Kazuya burst out into laughter, falling back onto his bed as he continued to laugh loudly. "Hahaha, that's hilarious! You sleep under him, right!? No wonder why you decided to move in with me~"

Kazuya admitted, he liked having Eijun keeping him company, since he didn't have any roommates anymore. It was fun to have someone to talk to and tease that didn't mind being near him. "So...what should we do, Eijun?" Kazuya pondered aloud, casting his eyes over towards the nervous pitcher.

"Why are you asking me?" Asked Eijun; he was just a temporary guest, so it should be up the catcher to decide what they would do, since it was _his_ room, after all. Kazuya seemed taken aback by his answer, blinking in slight confusion. "I would have thought that you were going to ask me to play catch with you or something."

Eijun pouted a bit, as much as he wanted to do that, it was too dark out and it was still hot. "I would, but you'd die out there, Miyuki!" Kazuya chuckled, ruffling the pitcher's soft, fluffy hair receiving a swat from his hand. "It's Kazuya, not Miyuki. And how would I die out there?"

Eijun knew he had said too much. "Uh...well, it's really hot out and..." He couldn't continue in fear that he'd say something relating to Kazuya's problem. Though, the catcher simply laughed and patted his shoulder, finding it adorable how he was at a loss for words. "It's really nice to know that you care so much about me, Eijun." Eijun fumbled with words to retaliate, but finally gave up on trying to put them into sentences.

"How about we watch a movie?"

Kazuya pulled out a bit of money from his wallet and was about to leave the room to go buy drinks and snacks for them as they watched the movie, when Eijun nearly ran into his back, following him around like a little puppy. "Hmm? What's up?"

"Uh...well...I..." Eijun wasn't able to form a sentence as he tried to tell the catcher that he wanted to go along with him. Kazuya simply laughed as he opened the door leading outside, gesturing him to follow. "Relax, Eijun. You can come with me if you'd like."

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><p>Eijun was planning on it being a simple walk to the vending machines, though, Kazuya had other ideas. He'd slung an arm around the oblivious pitcher's shoulders as they were walking and Eijun had yet to realize it.<p>

As they reached the vending machines, Kazuya had to unwrap his arm from around the pitchers shoulders so he could carry the food. Eijun, however, reached for it just after it fell from the machine at the same time, causing their hands to brush against each others. "I can get it." Eijun offered, hoping he could be of assistance to Kazuya, even if it was just doing small things. "Nah, it's fine. I can handle it." As much as he wanted to let the pitcher do stuff for him, he didn't want to seem far too lazy or overly demanding. Eijun was his roommate for the time being, and he wanted the pitcher to relax and feel comfortable being around him.

After getting the stuff they needed, the two trudged back to Kazuya's room and proceeded to watch a movie that Kazuya had picked out himself. To Eijun's dismay, the movie had turned out to be horror, and he wasn't so good with anything relating to the horror genre.

Kazuya had gotten bored during the middle half of the movie and wasn't even aware of the fact that his fingers had started to dig their way through the bandages that loitered the skin on his wrists to relieve an annoying itch.

He wasn't even aware that he was doing anything at all until Eijun whimpered in fear beside him as he watched the movie, taking to covering his eyes with his hands, hoping that if he kept them closed long enough, the movie would be over. Kazuya scooted a bit closer towards Eijun and wrapped the arm he'd been scratching at around the pitcher's shoulders and brought him closer towards his body. In a way, it benefited them both; Kazuya wouldn't be tempted to scratch at his wrists and Eijun would have someone to cling too if things got too scary for his liking.

Eijun looked absolutely terrified after it was over; his body trembled in fear and his eyes watered up with tears. The movie hadn't scared him...it had _terrified_ him. Small whimpers came from him as he thought of the demon in the movie coming out of the TV just to get him.

"Hey, hey, don't worry! It's only a movie." Kazuya made a mental note to himself to make sure to always watch horror movies with Eijun as long as they were rooming together. Kazuya pulled the pitcher close to him, hugging him as tightly as he could to let him know that he was there and wouldn't let anything hurt him.

"I know you're scared, but it's alright now, Eijun. If you feel scared, just know that I'm right here with you. Nothing will hurt you if I'm here, I promise." Eijun turned his gaze up to meet Kazuya's and found it hard to look away from the catcher's light brown eyes.

"It's late and we're both tired, so let's get to bed. I doubt that we'll even have practice; it's gonna be another scorcher tomorrow."

Eijun slowly found himself calming down and broke eye contact with the catcher.

How was it that just by being near Kazuya managed to calm him down so quickly?

Taking the bed across from Kazuya's, he was out like a log as soon as his face hit the soft pillow. Kazuya had promised him that there was nothing to fear as long as he was there, and somehow, his words helped ease his nerves a little bit.

* * *

><p>Eijun had nearly forgotten what Kataoka had told him, but when he heard the door creak open, he slowly cracked an eye open and noticed that Kazuya had gotten up from bed. "Miyuki...?" he called out groggily, causing the catcher to jump and turn towards him. "Uh...go back to sleep, Eijun~ I'm just going to the bathroom. I'll be right back."<p>

Eijun would've gone back to sleep if the words of Kataoka hadn't started to echo throughout his head.

_"Miyuki sneaks off to do this every single night, while everyone else is asleep."_

"I'll go with you." He yawned, slowly getting up out of the bed, and fumbling around in the dark to find his shoes. Eijun knew that he wasn't supposed to leave the catcher alone and if that meant invading Kazuya's privacy, then so be it.

Kazuya's smile seemed to waver a bit as he watched Eijun grab his shoes. "You don't have too, really..." The pitcher scowled and grabbed the catcher's wrists in his hands roughly, possibly pressing down on fresh wounds, making Kazuya wince in the process.

"What will you do if I don't go with you?"

That hit the nail on the head. Kazuya sighed in defeat, knowing that things would get loud if they continued, and would awaken the others. "Alright, alright. You can come with me, but I want you to wait outside, okay?"

As much has Eijun hated the fact that he'd be leaving Kazuya alone, he knew that he would have to give the catcher a bit of privacy to at least use the restroom alone.

* * *

><p>"I'll be out in a minute." Eijun frowned, feeling that he should go against Kazuya and follow him inside for safe precautions, but his feet stayed rooted to the ground. "You better be. If not, I'll drag you out of there myself." Kazuya chuckled and mumbled a,"Be right back" before entering the restroom.<p>

Eijun slumped down on the cold, tiled floor outside the restroom, wondering if he had made the right choice or not. While it was a warm summer night, the air conditioner on full blast made Eijun shiver and rub his arms that already had goosebumps forming from the exposure to the cold floor and air conditioner.

The restroom door swung open a few minutes alter and out came Kazuya. The first thing the catcher noticed was that Eijun was shivering and rubbing his arms. "Are you cold?" Eijun nodded slowly as he stood up from the ground, averting his gaze to avoid looking directly at Kazuya. "J-Just a bit...aren't you cold?"

Kazuya shook his head. "I'm actually hot, believe it or not."

* * *

><p>After getting back to Kazuya's dorm, Eijun found a bit of courage to ask the catcher something that had been bugging him all day. "If you're hot, then why don't you just take off your shirt or wear a T-shirt?"<p>

Kazuya paused, unsure of how to answer the pitcher's question without revealing his secret. It wasn't that he didn't trust Eijun, he just didn't want to have anyone fussing over him. "I'm fine -" Eijun glared at him, interrupting his response with,"I'm not going to judge you; I don't care about how your body looks, really."

He forced a smile upon his face as he stared deep into Eijun's golden eyes. "You may not care about it now, but you will soon~" Eijun's face turned beet red as he fumbled to find words to say. "H-Huh? What the hell is that supposed to mean!?"

Kazuya flashed him a cheeky grin, before turning off the light and heading over to his bed. Eijun mumbled about the catcher being twisted under his breath and proceeded in trying to fall back asleep once more as he climbed back into the bed. Even with his back faced against the catcher, he could still see the shadow of Kazuya taking off his shirt in the darkness of the room.

"Hey, Eijun..." Kazuya called out to him softly. "What do you want now?" Kazuya lowered his voice down to a whisper, almost quiet enough that Eijun almost didn't here him. "Don't turn around...you won't like what you see."

Why the hell was Kazuya even telling him this?

Eijun couldn't fall asleep; after he was sure that the catcher was sound asleep, Eijun turned over on to his other side to get a picture of what Kazuya didn't want him to see.

He felt his heart nearly stop beating once he saw how the catcher's arms and wrists looked...many parts of them were covered in bandages; some more recent than others. There were also a bunch of scars on his wrists too that ranged from small to long; diagonal to horizontal. Eijun felt his stomach churn just thinking about what Kazuya used to create those awful marks.

The biggest question that he had was why? Why did he have to hurt himself in this manner? As far as he knew, Kazuya had a twisted personality and was always looking for ways to annoy others, but he was still considerate towards others when they weren't doing too well.

'_What's really going on with you, Miyuki?'_

The catcher didn't seem like his usual self...he seemed to be more broken inside than anyone realized. Eijun had always admired how strong the catcher had seemed from the moment when they had first met one another up until that afternoon..._before_ he learned the truth. The truth hurt...instead of seeing the strong, fearless catcher everyone else saw, Eijun saw Kazuya as more fragile on the outside, almost as if his body could easily be broken apart, just like how he was on the inside.

It was up to him to save Kazuya from himself, but he couldn't do it alone...there was only so much he could do by himself.

_'This shouldn't be a secret just between you and me, Miyuki. The whole team should know; we're like one big family after all. You don't need to go through this alone, we're all here for you after all...'_

Today marked only the beginning of a slow, yet painful, recovery process for Miyuki Kazuya.

* * *

><p><strong>And that concludes chapter 1!<strong>

**` Let me give you a bit of a rundown on how I came up with this fic: During the beginning of my high school year, I became severely depressed, ended on bad terms with a boy I had once been interested in, lost all the people I considered to be my "best friends" as the depression ate away at my interests in having an actual social life. Things got very rough and I felt empty starting off my Junior year with only two friends, and I had considered "disappearing" from the world and then, one day, I met the most amazing girl who made me feel like I actually mattered, so this fic is dedicated to her amazing self. 3**

**` I wrote this story during the summer, recounting past experiences from people who'll look at me and say,"You're so happy, there's no way you could be depressed." and that was how I came up with the idea to use Miyuki; Eijun is too open, almost like a book, while Miyuki, on the other hand, isn't. I needed to portray a character who wouldn't be assumed to be hurting or hiding anything dark. **

**` Noting the changing of Miyuki to Kazuya: I just felt like Kazuya would be better to use than Miyuki as the story progresses. :P**

**` Remember**** to R&R! :3**


	2. Chapter 2: Progress

**Thank you for all the follows and faves! It means a lot to me. :)**

**I wasn't sure on how to portray Miyuki's father, so I just depicted him having a bad relationship with his son. ~.~**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter 2: Progress<span>**

* * *

><p>Kazuya had been right about there not being any practice...for the afternoon, that is. Everyone had woken up at the usual five-thirty AM for morning practice as they usually would. Coach Kataoka had them gather around the field to discuss how they would be practicing much harder that morning than they usually would, since they weren't going to have afternoon practice due to the heat wave coming in.<p>

Eijun had only been half listening, occasionally glancing over at Kazuya, worried about how he would keep an eye out for him at practice. They wouldn't always be paired up together, with so many pitchers on the team. Sometimes Furuya and Kazuya practiced together, while Eijun practiced with Chris, or they all switched up and would practice with other pitchers or catchers on the team that weren't on the first-string.

He hadn't noticed that Kataoka had stop speaking to them or even the players scattering about, until a hand landing on his shoulder snapped him out of his thoughts. Snapping out of his daze, he looked around to find that he and Kazuya were the only ones left standing on the field.

"Come on, Eijun. Let's get you warmed up." Eijun frowned, Kazuya was smiling and being his usual, annoying self, but how long would the facade last? He felt like everything Kazuya had told him, long before he'd learned the truth, had been nothing but big, fat lies. Partially, they were; going to Koshien that summer had been the biggest one of them all.

"Oh, sure..." he mumbled, trying to avoid glancing at the catcher's sleeved arms, wanting to ease his mind and churning stomach of the images of what those arms really looked like under them. He wondered to himself if Kazuya had gotten used to wearing long sleeves in the summer, because even with short sleeves on, he himself was sweating like crazy.

As they arrived in the bullpen, Furuya, who had been warming up with Miyauchi, looked at Eijun and nodded slightly, acknowledging the other's presence. While they were rivals competing for the same position as the Ace, they were still pretty close friends. Being on the first string as a first year, with only two others, meant that they had to get along. Haruichi, him, and Furuya had bonded over the months of practicing together and hanging out in each others classrooms during their lunch break or on days off from practice.

All three of them trusted one another and never beat around the bush when it came to things that were bothering them, yet Eijun felt his stomach flip a little. _'Harucchi and Furuya deserve to know...but how do I tell them without it getting back to Miyuki? I can't lie to them...that's not what best friends do.'_

"Eijun, are you gonna pitch or what?"

Eijun nodded, quickly shaking off any unnecessary thoughts as he took up his pitching form, delivering a moving fastball to the inside. He'd thought that he was doing fine, but the sour look Kazuya was giving him showed otherwise.

Kazuya sighed, standing up and removing his catcher's mask as he stared at him with cold eyes. Eijun felt his heart stop as he looked back at the catcher hesitantly. "That would have been a _home run_, Eijun." Kazuya hissed, making the pitcher's frustration increase. He just wanted to pitch, yet the catcher was making this more difficult than needed.

"Try it _again_."

Eijun fought off the urge to retaliate, saying he had been pitching fine, but bit his tongue to keep himself from spouting it out. "Fine. Whatever you say, Miyuki." That earned him a light bonk on the head from the catcher. "It's _Ka-zu-ya,_ not _Mi-yu-ki_!" Kazuya snapped harshly; that was the last straw for Eijun.

"Why do you want me to call you that anyways? It's the same thing, whether I call you _Kazuya_ or _Miyuki_." Eijun just couldn't understand why Kazuya was throwing a fit over what he wanted to be called; they both referred to the same person, after all.

That struck one of Kazuya's nerves. Taking a deep breath as a calming method, he dropped the ball in his hand, having it slowly roll towards Eijun's feet. "Drop it, Eijun..." He advised, not wanting to let his anger get the better of him. The last thing he wanted was to hurt the pitcher or make him cry over something as frivolous as a name.

"Or you'll do _what_?" Eijun irked, holding his ground against the catcher as he glared harshly at him. Kazuya never ceased to aggravate him, when things seemed to be going smoothly. And why would now be any different from before?

Furuya and Miyauchi had stopped practicing and turned to look at the bickering teens. Furuya kept silent, not wanting to interfere with the two, preferring not to get involved in the matter if it didn't concern him. "You better lay off, kid." Miyauchi commented, seeing how the catcher was on the verge of lashing out at the southpaw. Kazuya's body shook with rage as he glared at Eijun, gritting his teeth, hands curling up into fists as he tried once more to calm himself down.

"Not until he gives me an answer! He always does this and it's really starting to piss me off!" Eijun exclaimed, fed up with everyone taking the catcher's side. Why couldn't they see that he wasn't the one at fault here? Kazuya had started all of it, not him. If he had just let him pitch, there wouldn't be a brewing storm conjuring up in the bullpen.

At the sound of Eijun's voice bellowing through the field, most of the Seido players had turned their sights to the bullpen, to see what all the fuss was about, though, the sight of the catcher's mask hitting the ground was enough to fully grab their attention.

Kazuya hastily walked over to where the pitcher was standing, stopping in front of him, leaning in dangerously close to his face. At the looming angle, he noted that Eijun had light freckles dotting along his sun-kissed skin. "You think that you're the only one who's pissed off, huh? Well Eijun, that's where you're wrong." Kazuya's hand roughly grabbed Eijun's shoulder, and as a reflex, the pitcher grabbed hold of the catcher's wrist and attempted to pry it off.

"Let go of me, Miyuki!"

"It's _Kazuya_, and who says that I have to obey _you_?"

"Who says that I even want _**you**_ as _**my catcher**_!?"

Eijun regretted the words once they flew out of his mouth as he noted the expression on Kazuya's face, making him feel like the biggest asshole in the world. Kazuya had opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out and he hastily shut it; his light brown eyes had widened in shock and had started to well up with tears. Before Eijun could apologize, Kazuya's hand slipped from his shoulder, and he couldn't stop him from storming out of the bullpen, slamming the gate shut behind him.

All eyes were on the pitcher as he watched the catcher leave from his sight. At that moment, he knew that he'd fucked up big time. He supposed he could go chase after him, but what would he say once they were alone?

* * *

><p>Eijun couldn't concentrate; his mind kept replaying what had happened during practice that morning over and over. He felt ashamed of what he'd told Kazuya, but how exactly was he going to apologize for what he'd said to him? The catcher was already hurting enough as it is and he just had to go and open his big mouth, hurting him even more.<p>

He wouldn't be the least bit surprised if the catcher resented him for it and kicked him out of the dorm; Kataoka would just have to find someone else to help Kazuya out.

"Sawamura-kun, what's wrong?" Yoshikawa Haruno asked worriedly as she approached him during their lunch break. Eijun was usually chipper and seen scarfing down his lunch, as if it were the first thing that he'd eaten all day; today, Eijun just seemed to be out of it. He wasn't smiling or engaging in any conversations or even eating. Instead, he sat there with his history textbook out, opened up to the pages they were supposed to be reading for homework.

"Miyuki is what's wrong." Eijun replied softly, never taking his eyes off of the words printed in the textbook. Haruno frowned at his quiet response as she took the empty seat in front of him. There was no way Eijun could stay like this. Shutting the textbook hastily, it forced Eijun to look up at her. "What happened, Sawamura-kun? Did you two get into a fight?"

He nodded sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck as he thought back to the events of that morning. "Yeah...I told him,_**"Who says I even want you as my catcher"**_ and he got really upset over it and just stormed out of the bullpen."

Haruno thought to herself for a moment, unsure of what to say to Eijun to help him resolve the conflict. When it came to apologizing to their friends, guys were pretty different from girls.

From across the room, Kanemaru strutted over from his group of friends to ask Eijun something that everyone seemed to wonder. "Sawamura, just what the hell happened between you and Miyuki-senpai during practice?" Eijun frowned, not really wanting to repeat what he'd just told Haruno, he replied simply with, "We got into a fight and now he's upset at me."

Kanemaru and Haruno exchanged sympathetic looks for the pitcher. A depressed Eijun was never a good sign. "Sawamura-kun, have you apologized to Miyuki-senpai yet?"

Eijun cast his eyes downwards, trying not to meet their inquisitive gazes. "No."

Kanemaru sighed, shaking his head at the pitcher in disbelief. "He probably doesn't even know how." Eijun's eyes widened in shock. Kanemaru sure caught on to his problems fast. "How did you know!?"

Both of them looked startled at his outburst, but let it slide for now. At least Eijun was slowly reverting back to his old self again. Haruno had just come up with a solution. She didn't know whether or not it would actually work - Kazuya and Eijun were both guys after all - but it was worth a shot. "Sawamura-kun, why not just go up to his classroom and talk to him about your problem and try to work out an agreement?"

Of course, why didn't he think of that!?

Eijun bolted up from his chair, and grabbed Haruno's hands, shaking them up and down repeatedly with a huge grin on his face. "Thank you, Yoshikawa-chan! I'll go do that!"

* * *

><p>Eijun found himself on the second years floor, completely lost and unsure of which classroom was Kazuya's. They all looked the same to him. He didn't know anybody either, so asking for help was out of the question.<p>

Did this mean that he'd have to search every single one? Lunch break wasn't that long and there were multiple classrooms to be searched. He'd be lucky to have searched half of them by the time the school bell rang for students to return to their assigned class.

"Sawamura, what are you doing up here?" Kuramochi's voice called out from behind him. Eijun jumped a bit, turning around to face the shortstop with a look of relief. "Kuramochi-senpai!"

Kuramochi's uniform shirt was wrinkled, his hair a disheveled mess, and by looking closely enough, his bottom lip was bleeding a bit. "Yeah, it's me. What are you doing here anyways? Shouldn't you be downstairs with the other first years?"

Eijun snickered at his roommates appearance. It wasn't everyday that he got to see his senpai looking like he'd survived a typhoon. "Why do you look like that?"

Kuramochi blushed a bit, recalling the events of that morning in his room, when Masuko was out, while he was supposed to have been getting dressed for school. "Ryou-san and I got a bit carried away - wait, why the fuck am I even telling you this!? Also, I should test out that new wrestling move on you, for telling Miyuki that I had a bad case of gas!"

Eijun took a step back, holding his hands out and waving them around. "Wait! I need to know where Miyuki's classroom is at -" Kuramochi merely grabbed the first year by his shirt and proceeded to drag him down the hallway in the direction of Kazuya's classroom.

Kuramochi let him go once they were standing in the entrance way to the classroom. Scanning the room, Kuramochi pointed his finger over to where Kazuya was sitting in the far back of the room, near the open window.

Kazuya looked terrible; his hair was a mess, his uniform wrinkled up, and his mood seemed to be downright depressed.

"Hey Miyuki, I found something that'll cheer you up!"

He could make a run for it, but Kuramochi would catch him before he even made it down the hallway.

Kazuya stopped reading the score-book that he had out on his desk and looked over towards the doorway where Kuramochi had called out to him. He wasn't in the mood for the shortstop's antics today.

Once he saw a certain brunet standing next to Kuramochi, he got up from his seat and slowly walked over towards the entrance way. Eijun was sure that he was going to get an earful or shoved up against the wall, but none of that happened.

Eijun noticed the redness in the catcher's eyes behind his glasses and instantly croaked out an apology. "I'm really sorry for what I said to you at practice...I didn't mean it, honestly. I was just frustrated."

Kazuya stayed silent.

"W-well, I'll be going now -" Eijun was stopped by Kazuya's hand reaching out to clutch the back of his navy-colored blazer. "Eijun...will you listen to me rant when we get back our dorm?"

Eijun had no other choice. He wanted to make Kazuya feel better, so if it meant listening to him rant, then so be it. "Of course, Miyuki!"

While it may not have meant much to anyone else, Kazuya's spirits were lifted a bit.

* * *

><p>Eijun was jittery all class period and as the final bell for school rang, he was out off the door before anyone else. Running with the tire had it's benefits; he was able to run to the dorms as fast as his legs could could take him.<p>

Kazuya wasn't back yet, so Eijun decided to start on his homework. While he wasn't the best student there was, he at least tried his best to complete his homework and turn it in on time.

After about ten minutes, the door to the room opened and Kazuya came in. "Welcome back, Miyuki." The catcher didn't seem to hear him as he collapsed onto his bed face first with a sigh. Eijun turned around in the chair worriedly. "Miyuki, are you alright?"

"It's Kazuya. I'm fine, just a bit tired." His muffled voice sounded from the pillow. Eijun got up from the desk and made his way over to the catchers bed, sitting down on the end of it.

"So...what did you want to talk about?" Kazuya lifted his up head from the pillow to talk normally to Eijun. "Hmmm...it's more like a rant, but I hope that you're ready for it."

Eijun shrugged his shoulders. They had plenty of time due to no afternoon practice, so if it took all day, he would still be there for the other male. "If it'll make you feel any better, go for it."

Kazuya sighed, sitting upright and turning his body around to face Eijun. "My dad is an asshole. During my first year here, he told me that I was making a fool out of myself for hanging out with Kuramochi, saying that someone like me shouldn't be friends with a delinquent like him."

Kazuya's hands balled up into fists. Just thinking about his father made his blood boil. "He came to one of my games and when he found out that most of the baseball team members were gay, he started spouting out nonsense like how it was a sin, how they were going to hell, and some other shit."

Kazuya gripped the pillow in his hands as tight as he could, causing his knuckles to turn white. "Eijun, my dad is a homophobic asshole who will disown me if he finds out that I'm gay and I don't know what I'll do when he does find out about it..."

Eijun could only listen silently, wanting nothing more than to reach out to the catcher and comfort him with a hug.

"My mom and dad have been divorced since I was three, so I have to put up with him. I'm a terrible person; I'm probably worse than my dad in the ways that I deal with my problems." Eijun knew he was hinting at the cutting, but that's as much as he could get out of Kazuya as confessing to being a cutter at the moment.

He watched as the catcher took off his glasses to rub his eyes, and felt his fingers itch to pull Kazuya into his arms and reassure him that it was alright and that if things did end with his father disowning him, he could come stay with him and his family in Nagano. But he didn't, he sat there silently, and tried to avoid opening his mouth and hurting the older male even more.

"Miyuki...do you want to be left alone...? If so, I'll leave the room and come back when you feel better..."

"Yeah...come back a bit later."

* * *

><p>Eijun was worried sick about Kazuya; his thoughts were a jumbled up mess full of the worst possibilities he could think of. <em>'What if he tries to cut himself? What if he tries to kill himself? What if he hates me and is kicking me out of the room? What if-'<em>

His thoughts were interrupted as Haruichi called out to him from in front of Furuya's room, probably waiting for the raven-haired pitcher to return from the idnoor training area. "Are you aright, Eijun-kun?" He shrugged, unsure of how he could answer Haruichi back when he didn't have a clue on how he was feeling. "Yes and no. I apologized to Miyuki, but I'm not sure if he accepted it or not...but I did find something out about him, Harucchi."

The pitcher scanned around to make sure there wasn't anyone lurking around and eavesdropping in on their conversation. Leaning in closer to Haruichi, Eijun whispered low enough so only they could hear. "Miyuki is afraid of his father...he says that he's scared of telling his father that he's gay because his father is homophobic...but it doesn't explain why he's so depressed though."

Haruichi took Eijun's hands in his own, giving them a gentle squeeze. Haruichi had learned that if he took either Eijun or Furuya's hands into his own and squeezed them, they could tell each other anything. "Eijun-kun, I think Miyuki-senpai might have been called by his father earlier this morning." Eijun stared at him, eyes widening a bit at the thought of what Kazuya's asshole of a father could even want from him so early in the morning. "What do you mean?"

Haruichi squeezed his hands a bit harder, almost as if he were scared to let the pitcher know what he'd heard. He took a deep breath in before he began his next sentence. "We were woken up by yelling and cursing at four in the morning...and Zono decided to go take a look and found out that it was Miyuki-senpai..."

Eijun wasn't liking where this conversation was headed. Gulping a bit, he squeezed Haruichi's hands more firmly to let him know that it was okay to go on. "He said that Miyuki-senpai looked terrified, like he'd just woken up from a nightmare. I think...his father might have called him to tell him something important."

"But...why? Why does someone like him even deserve to be treated this way by his own father!?"

Haruichi let go of Eijun's hands and pulled him into a comforting hug. "Not everyone has supportive parents, Eijun." He murmured into the pitcher's chest.

Eijun held onto Haruichi's smaller frame tightly, afraid that if he let go, the smaller would be gone. "What about you, Harucchi?" Haruichi smiled at the question. He knew that he and Ryousuke were extremely lucky to have such an amazing family. "My family is very supportive of Aniki and I. What about yours, Eijun-kun?" Eijun had no idea really, it wasn't like he had ever found someone that could put up with him.

"I guess that they're supportive, I dunno. I haven't really found anyone who actually wants to be with me that won't take my mind off of baseball." Haruichi chuckled, breaking their hug. "Do you feel any better?" Eijun admitted, he did feel better by talking to Haruichi.

"Why don't you go and stay by Miyuki-senpai's side until he's feeling better?" Eijun paused, he'd almost forgotten about Kazuya.

"Oh shit...what if he tries to do _that_ again...I'll see you around, Harucchi!"

Haruichi could only watch and wave as the pitcher took off.

"I just hope Eijun-kun realizes that there is someone like that who wants to be with him..."

* * *

><p>Eijun ran back to Kazuya's dorm at full speed nearly crashing into people as he did so. But he didn't care; he wasn't going to slow down until he made sure that Kazuya was alright. Once he reached the dorm, he pounded on the door as hard and loudly as he could with his fist.<p>

Kazuya opened the door hastily, unsure of what was going on. Eijun standing at the door, completely out of breath, didn't lessen Kazuya's worry any bit. Before he had time to react, the pitcher had pulled him into a bear hug. The catcher was stunned by this, but hugged the pitcher back.

"I'm so sorry..." Eijun murmured, causing the catcher to smile slightly. Running his fingers through Eijun's soft hair, Kazuya whispered, "It's okay, really."

A silence fell among them as they stood in the doorway, unsure of what else to say to each other.

"So...Youichi told me that he didn't have a bad case of gas."

Eijun blanched, figuring he was caught red-handed in the act of lying.

"Oh...really? What a surprise..." He mumbled, trying not to sound too suspicious.

"But...since the whole team knows about it, it makes sense that he's trying to deny it." A smirk formed on his face and a light chuckle escaped his lips as he thought back to Kuramochi's reaction.

"Miyuki, you're one twisted person, ya know?" There was a shrug from the catcher,"It's Kazuya, and I'll take that as a compliment since I've heard that before."

Eijun pouted. "How many times are you going to keep correcting me?" Kazuya laughed, ruffling up his hair. "Until you get it right."

Something sparked inside of Eijun's head. "I don't see you correcting anyone else, so why do you want me to call you Kazuya so bad?"

Kazuya paused, thinking about what the pitcher had just said. "Good point, Eijun. I'll make sure to drop a note to Youichi and the others about being on a first name basis."

The catcher snickered as he thought of an amazing idea. "When you see Kuramochi again, call him Youichi-senpai. I want to capture his expression on camera."

Eijun scowled in response. "Aren't you two supposed to be best friends?" Kazuya grinned and nodded at him. Of course Kuramochi was his best friend, but they weren't best friends without teasing and joking about one another. "Of course, but Youichi's really fun to mess with."

Upon entering the room, Eijun fumbled with yet another apology. "Miyuki...I'm sorry for what I said back there, so..." Kazuya sighed, he'd already forgiven Eijun and yet there he was again apologizing to him. It was rather cute to see Eijun like that, though. "It's fine, I'm sorry as well. I shouldn't have taken my frustration out on you, Eijun."

Eijun opened his mouth to say something, but Kazuya stopped him. "Don't worry, I forgave you after Youichi talked some sense into me after you left."

"What did he say?"

Kazuya smirked and shook his head, holding a finger up to his lips. "It's a secret, but I'm sure that you'll figure it out sooner or later, Eijun~"

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Hahaha~"

"You shitty four eyed catcher! I regret apologizing to you!"

"The look on your face when you apologized said otherwise!"

"Shut up!"

There was a loud knock at the door and Kazuya looked at Eijun with a smug look in his face. "Go answer the door." The pitcher gaped, taken aback by what the catcher had just demanded of him. "Why me!? It's your room!" Kazuya smirked and sat down on the bed. "But you're my roommate for the time being." Eijun glared at the catcher defeated, and stumbled over towards the door yelling,"Fine!"

Opening the door, the two were greeted with the sight of a very agitated Kuramochi. "You two are noisier together than when you're by yourself, Sawamura."

Eijun scowled at his roommate. Kuramochi lived on the first floor, there was no way he could hear them from all the way down there. He didn't even live under them, either. "You can't hear us!"

"Oh really? _"You shitty four eyed catcher! I regret apologizing to you!" "The look on your face when you apologized said otherwise!" "Shut up!"_ Sound familiar?"

Eijun felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment and turned to see the catcher doubled over on his bed laughing hysterically, tears streaming down his cheeks in the process. "Oh, my God, Youichi, do it again, that's hilarious! Eijun's voice was spot on!"

"Since when were we ever on a first name basis!?" Kazuya smirked at him as he managed to compose himself. "Since today! You can thank Eijun for that."

Eijun backed up a little from the shortstop and closer towards the catcher. While Kazuya was a twisted person, he still felt safer being near him than Kuramochi. "Why me!?"

Kuramochi felt his eyebrows twitch in agitation, once more. He had had enough of their mutual antics. "Kazuya, you and Sawamura seriously need to stop flirting and just get together already."

"Did you hear that, Eijun! Youichi calls me Kazuya, so why don't you!?"

Eijun groaned loudly. He wasn't ever going to hear the end of the first name basis thing from Kazuya. "It doesn't matter whether I call you by your first or last name, just as long as you know that I'm talking to you!"

"To answer your question Youichi, sometime in the near future~" Eijun gaped at the catcher's statement and frantically shook his head. "There's no way in hell that I would ever date someone like you!"

"We'll see about that, Eijun~"

* * *

><p>Night time had fallen quickly and it was time for the two to turn in for bed.<p>

"Goodnight, Eijun~" Kazuya called out, smiling widely at the pitcher across from him.

"Goodnight to you too, Miyuki."

Eijun turned over onto his side to sleep, however...

"Are you still awake, Eijun?"

"Yeah...no thanks to you."

"I'll let you call me Miyuki, but on one condition."

Eijun frowned and turned over to face the catcher. "What's that?"

"Stay here with me for a while."

"Why?"

Kazuya smiled at him.

"You make things interesting around here."

"Why don't you come and stay with me in my room?"

A light chuckle escaped the catcher's lips.

"Youichi has a bad case of gas, remember?"

The two laughed at what the catcher had said.

"Eijun?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks. I've been in need of a good laugh all day."

Eijun wouldn't admit it out loud, but part of him was glad to see that the catcher was feeling better.

They still had a long road ahead of them though...

* * *

><p><strong>And that concludes chapter 2~<strong>

**Miyuki's father may make a debut - and cause one hell of a scene - in a later chapter!**

**Please R&R~**

**~Katie :3**


	3. Chapter 3: His Smile

_**Thank you for all the reviews, follows and faves! It means a lot to me. :')**_

**Warning, this story includes: **Boys Love, Foul language, attempted/mention of suicide, depression, self harm, and feels.

**_Remember to R&R~_**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter 3: His Smile <span>**

* * *

><p>Kazuya could remember the first time he had started cutting.<p>

_He was a freshman at Seido and his roommates weren't the nicest of people in the world, often berating him and ordering him around like he was their slave._

_His father had decided to drop in unexpectedly at one of their games to see his son play. His father wasn't a fan of baseball, but came anyways because he had some spare time on his hands and wanted to see his son play._

_Even though they lost, everyone was still in high spirits. They had tried their hardest, but it just wasn't good enough._

_His father had been watching from the stands, overhearing a group of people gossiping amongst themselves._

_"Seido has some pretty cute guys, don't you think?"_

_"True, true, but most of them are taken."_

_"Really!?"_

_"I've heard that most of them aren't attracted to women."_

_That's all his father had to hear before he left the stands to go have a strong discussion with his son._

_Kazuya had been hanging out with a group of friends, chatting about the game, when his father approached him. His friends had taken this as a hint to make their departure from the the catcher, leaving him standing there, Kazuya was terrified at being alone with his father._

_"Kazuya, we have to talk." His father hissed, making the catcher petrified. He had never seen his father act so aggressive before._

_"What about, dad?"_

_"I'm not so sure that I approve of you being at Seido."_

_Kazuya raised a brow, unsure of what his father was getting at. His father had never once cared about him choosing a high school, so why was he bringing it up now? "Why not?"_

_His father was never one to suger-coat things. "About your teammates."_

_There was something quite off with the way he'd said that, almost as if he were talking about a disease."What about them?"_

_He wasn't sure that he was emotionally, or physically, prepared for what his father was about to say to him._

_"How many of them are gay?" Revulsion lingering in his tone as he'd said those words._

_Kazuya was taken aback, nearly falling over in shock of the question asked. What exactly was his father getting at? "Um...most of them..."_

_Something was burning deep inside of his father; a hateful feeling towards the Seido baseball team. His father's face was crinkled up in disgust and his brows furrowed as he took a step towards Kazuya. "Is your delinquent of a best friend gay, Kazuya?"_

_Kazuya could only nod, hoping that his father would just drop the subject already. He was feeling uncomfortable enough as it was, knowing what his father was going to ask him next. "Yes, sir..."_

_His father snapped; grabbing his arm and squeezing it tightly, he bellowed out,"Are you gay, Kazuya!?"_

_The catcher felt the tears well up in the corners of his eyes, threatening to fall at any given second and spill his secret. _

_"No." It was a lie, but what else could he have done?_

_The grip on his arm lessened; his father seemed content with his lie. "Good. No son of mine will be gay, do you understand, Kazuya? I also don't want you hang out with **ANY** of the baseball team members; they may influence you to become gay."_

_During a trip to the bathroom to wash his tear streaked face off, something caught his attention...there was a razor sitting on the sink top just waiting to be picked up._

_Kazuya carefully lifted the razor up in his hand and rolled the left sleeve on his jersey back so that his bare arm was exposed._

_""No son of mine will be gay"...huh? I guess I'm not your son then..."_

_With a simple motion, he brought it to his wrist and that was how it began..._

_Cutting was the coping mechanism he used when dealing with a problem or stressful situation._

_It turned from just a _**small habit**_ into an _**addiction**_._

* * *

><p>Eijun noticed that Kazuya was just staring off into oblivion, unaware of being in the cafeteria. "Miyuki?" Eijun asked, looking over at the catcher who was sitting next to him, ignoring his meal as he seemed to be lost in deep thoughts. Eijun pushed his chair back out a bit to see just what Kazuya was doing with his hands under the table.<p>

Eijun noticed how the catcher was scratching at his left wrist, probably unaware that he was doing anything. Eijun scowled and grabbed ahold of the catchers hand, knowing full well what Kazuya was doing to himself.

Kazuya instantly snapped back into reality when he felt his own hand being firmly grasped by a smaller, rougher one. Eijun was giving him a disapproving look as he held onto his wrist. "Don't do that." He whispered sternly, as if he were a mother scolding her child for something they'd done wrong.

Eijun held onto Kazuya's hand to refrain him from aggravating his wounds any further. Kazuya's fingers were red and sticky with the fresh blood he had drawn from his now freshly opened wounds.

Kazuya lowered his gaze away from the pitchers stern look to stare down at the bleeding wounds. "I'm sorry, Eijun..." Eijun shook his head, grabbing a napkin off of the table and pls img it down on the catchers wrist.

"Don't be. It's not your fault."

* * *

><p>In the boys bathroom, Eijun was busy helping Kazuya clean and address the scars that he'd reopened on his left wrist. Kazuya sat on the sink watching as Eijun gently cleaned the wounds with peroxide. "You don't have to do this, Eijun..." He mumbled, causing the brunet who was cleaning the wounds to scowl in frustration."You say that one more time and I'll tell boss that you are hurt and that you shouldn't be allowed to practice!"<p>

Kazuya chuckled a bit, causing the pitcher's scowl to widen as he finished up with the bandaging. "There, it's all done." Kazuya bite down his lower lip, unsure of if he wanted to show the pitcher that he wasn't quite finished yet.

"Miyuki, what are you hiding from me now?" The pitcher demanded, ready to go to coach Kataoka at any given second to rant the catcher out.

Kazuya groaned in defeat, pulling off his shirt and setting it aside. The sight of the catchers well toned, muscular body took Eijun off guard a bit.

_'Stop looking at his body Eijun, and start focusing on addressing those wounds.'_ His mind reprimanded him, making the pitcher scowl a bit in frustration.

As Eijun cleaned and bandaged some of the wounds on the catcher's left arm, he decided to make a bit of small talk with Kazuya. Maybe he could get a backstory on how this all began. "So Miyuki, when did this become a habit?"

Kazuya looked at him nervously as he tried to recall when exactly it had started. "Um...roughly around last year...a month or two before we met each other. It's not exactly a _habit_; it's more of an _addiction_..."

"Why do you do this to yourself?"

Kazuya averted his eyes. "It helps me cope with problems relating to my dad, baseball, and other stuff I feel like I have no control over."

"Can't you find other coping mechanisms?"

Kazuya shook his head defeatedly. "I've tried, but none of them seemed to work."

Eijun finished up with the bandaging on the catchers right arm, he handed Kazuya his shirt back. "You should wear short sleeves." Kazuya stared at him like he'd lost his mind. What would he say if people asked about the bandages and scars? "Are you crazy!? What will people think-"

"They won't care. Even if they do, it's not their place to judge you."

* * *

><p>It was another scorcher outside...and Eijun was stuck out in it. Kazuya had promised to catch for him this afternoon and yet he was nowhere to be seen.<p>

The pitcher scowled as he whipped the sweat from off of his brow. He was getting ridiculously hot standing around in the sun. "Where the hell is that stupid four eyed bastard at? He better have a good reason for making me wait out in this heat." He mumbled, waiting for the catcher to come out onto the field.

Women finally caught site of the catcher walking with Kuramochi towards the field. To his surprise, Kazuya was wearing short sleeves, bandages in full view. After departing from the shortstop, Kazuya made his way over towards the pitcher with a smirk on his face. "Eijun, guess what?" The pitcher glared at him and turned his head to face away from the catcher. "Don't wanna know."

Kazuya laughed, wrapping an arm around the pitcher's shoulders as he looked off in the direction the shortstop had gone off too. "Youichi says that when you return back to your old room, you're going to be his sparring buddy for the next month or two because of you saying that he had a bad case of gas."

Eijun regretted ever have saying those words to the catcher as he squirmed in Kazuya's hold, trying to break free from him. Eijun just couldn't understand why Kazuya was only affectionate towards _him_ and not anyone else. "Let go of me!"

"And what if I say no?" That damn smirk was going to be the end of him.

Eijun gave up on trying to break free, knowing full well that it was hopeless; Kazuya had an extremely tight hold around him. "Stupid four eyed catcher..." He mumbled underneath his breath, causing said catcher to laugh obnoxiously.

Eijun's golden eyes traced the catchers muscular arms slightly, wondering why Kazuya had decided to put on his Seido t-shirt today instead of his dual usual long sleeved one. "What made you decide to wear short sleeves?"

"It's hot outside." Eijun wanted nothing more than to smack the grin off of the catchers face. He already knew that it was hot outside, he'd been standing out in it for at least three minutes waiting for the catcher to show up. "Of course it is, but why now of all days?"

"Hmm...just to see how people will react once they see that I'm not the "perfect catcher" I'm supposed to be."

The words may have been light to Kazuya, but they stung in Eijun's mind a little. There was no way in hell that he would ever be able to forget them. Kazuya was always assumed to be perfect every way imaginable, but Eijun knew that the catcher was completely far from it.

'_When I first saw those pictures...what did I think about Miyuki?'_

As he was practicing with Kazuya, the answer had started to become clearer with every pitch that he threw.

_'Of course...I saw the real Miyuki...'_

"Eijun, your four seamer is looking better today."

"Really!?"

"Yeah, just don't let it be good for today only though."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean!?"

"It means, don't pitch well one day and then pitch terrible the next!"

That seemed to fire the pitcher up with determination. Eijun grinned widely, eyes shining with excitement as he pointed the ball in his hands towards the catcher. "You better be prepared, because I'm going to improve my pitching and become the ace before you know it!"

Kazuya smirked at the statement; the old Eijun seemed to be back. "Whatever you say, Eijun. But remember, you still have competition with Furuya being on the team."

"Then I'll have to work even harder to surpass Furuya!" Eijun declared boldly, causing his teammates to mutter about how ridiculously loud he was being.

* * *

><p>After practice ended, Kataoka had called Eijun to his office to discuss how things were coming along between him and Kazuya. He'd heard about their little incident in the bullpen and was starting to question whether or not Eijun was actually helping the catcher with his problem.<p>

"How have you two been doing?" He asked, patiently awaiting an answer as the pitcher say dis in the chair It was rough at first, but I think Miyuki is starting to trust me more. He's told me that the reason he hurts himself is to cope with his problems."

Kataoka seemed to take note this,"What might those problems be?" Eijun thought back to when he had been patching the catcher up in the bathroom. "His dad, baseball, school, life..." He could go on all day with the list, but Kataoka stopped him, obviously having gotten the point. "Miyuki needs a change in atmosphere." Eijun raised a brow, unsure of what Kataoka meant by that. "What do you mean by that, boss?"

"Don't call me boss, Sawamura. It's not only Miyuki who needs a change in atmosphere; the whole team needs some time away from baseball."

What was Kataoka planning that could take their minds away from baseball?

* * *

><p>"A trip, maybe?" Kazuya suggested as he sat on his bed doing the remainder of his homework. Eijun had only told him part of what had happened in Kataoka's office, so he could only imagine what it was the coach was actually planning. Eijun shrugged his shoulders, unsure of what to believe anymore. "Seems like it. He told me that the whole team needs time away from baseball. What the hell does that even mean anyways?" He pondered as he tried to work out a math problem. Math had never his strongest subject in school; he was still struggling over fractions.<p>

"You're pretty slow on news, but coach has been receiving complaints about some of our test grades. We practice until late, so we have to find time to study on our own time. I guess that it's affecting the third years the most."

Eijun, who had been erasing the work he'd just done wrong, only heard half of what the catcher had said, and merely nodded to let Kazuya know that he was semi-listening to him.

Kazuya turned his head over towards Eijun to find the pitcher staring at a homework problem intensely. "Do you want any help? I'm pretty good at math." Eijun felt his face heat up, mortified that Kazuya had just seen him struggling over a basic math problem. It's fine, I got it."

Kazuya stood up from his bed and stretched his arms over his head as he walked over towards Eijun's bunk. "What are you stuck on? I'll help you through it." Eijun shyly pointed at the problem he'd been working on for the past fifteen minutes, hoping Kazuya wouldn't tease him over it. "Ah, that one's easy. You plug the four in for x into the original equation and then you solve it."

As Kazuya helped the pitcher through his homework, he felt an odd feeling in his chest start to grow. Being with a clingy Eijun was rather difficult at first, but it was starting to grow on him more as they spent more time together. Kazuya was enjoying Eijun's company to say the least.

"Miyuki?" Eijun called out, wondering if the catcher had dozed off due to the silence that had grown around them. "Ah, sorry. I was just thinking. What do you need help with?" Eijun handed him the sheet, eyes shining with confidence. "Can you check over this?" As Kazuya reviewed Eijun's work, he noticed that Eijun was smarter then he seemed. If given a bit of a push, the pitcher could finish his work easily.

"It looks good to me." Eijun beamed at the praise; his confidence rising as he took his paper back from the catcher. "Miyuki...what were you thinking so hard about?"

Eijun was also brighter then he appeared to be as well. There was no way Kazuya could admit to Eijun that he'd been thinking about him. "Hmm...if I tell you, then you'll just get mad." Eijun raised a brow, suspicion rising as he leaned in closer towards the catchers face. "You better not have been thinking about-"

Kazuya interrupted him with,"Relax, relax, of course not. I was just thinking about what the coach has planned, that's all." He knew what Eijun would have said, and he knew that the pitcher cared - even if he didn't show it half the time.

Eijun bought that lie.

"So...what do you think boss has to say to us?"

"I dunno, Eijun. I guess that we'll find out in the morning though." Kazuya said as he got off of Eijun's bed, ruffling the pitchers brown locks before making his way over towards his own bed across from the pitchers.

"Goodnight, Eijun~"

Eijun mumbled his goodnight as he turned off the light, drifting off to sleep instantly.

* * *

><p>Kataoka stood in front of the baseball team with an announcement to make. He wasn't looking too pleased with them. Something had <em>definitely<em> pissed him off. "As you all know, baseball is something that each and every one of you is extremely passionate about, however..." His piercing gaze focused directly on the third years. "I've only seen five perfect scores on some of your exams."

The tension amongst the third years was so thick that it could almost be cut with a knife. Kataoka wasn't happy with them; they knew personally that if Kataoka wasn't pleased with them, they had better shape up or risk getting demoted or kicked off the team. "I have booked us a place at a local inn for an entire week. There will be four of you to a room, so it will be a good time for you all to relax and catch up on your studies without any distractions."

Murmurs arose from the crowd about it. A whole week without baseball? Was the coach insane? What type of inn were they even going to be staying in? Would they be able to choose their roommates?

"We leave tomorrow morning at six, so be ready on time."

The sound of,"Yes, sir!" echoed in unison throughout the field.

Kataoka dismissed them and the amount of chatter grew around them"I can't believe coach is actually _permitting_ this." Kazuya remarked in astonishment as he and Eijun headed back to the dorms to pack their stuff.

"I guess even boss needs a bit of a break himself."

As the dorm building came into view, Eijun pondered aloud, looking over at the catcher walking alongside him on the wide path. "Who do you want to share a room with besides me?"

He'd received a shrug from the catcher. Kazuya didn't care who he shared with, just as long as Eijun was going to be there. "Anyone's fine, really."

_'That's a lie and you know it, Miyuki. You just don't want anyone else besides me to know about your problem.'_

Eijun had nearly forgotten that he'd left most of his personal belongings in the room he shared with Kuramochi and Masuko. His bags weren't even close to being ready for a week. Eijun groaned loudly in frustration. How could he have been stupid enough to bring only a few pairs of clothes and simple toiletries when he'd first moved in with the catcher?

Kazuya, who had been watching he pitcher antagonize, snickered lightly to himself from his bed. "What's wrong, Eijun? Forget something?"

Eijun scowled as he packed the remainder of his clothes. "I forgot to bring the rest of my stuff with me when I moved in..." Kazuya could barely hold back his laughter as he watched Eijun's face turn slightly red with embarrassment and anger. "You had better go and get them then."

As Eijun trudged miserably out of the room, Kazuya let out all the loud laughs that he'd been struggling to hold back. "Hahaha~ Man, is Eijun oblivious or what?"

Kuramochi had taken most of Eijun's stuff, believing that the pitcher was moving in with the catcher permanently, and dropped it off in a plastic bag the day that Eijun had first moved in with Kazuya. The catcher had simply thrown it up onto the bunk above the pitchers bed, figuring that Eijun would see it sooner or later.

"Sorry, Eijun~"

* * *

><p>Eijun's body ached with every step he took, and it was all thanks to one the new wresting moves Kuramochi had tried out on him when he had gone to pick up the remainder of his stuff.<p>

"Damn that stupid four eyed catcher! He tricked me into believing that my stuff was still in my old room. Just you wait until I get back, Miyuki! I'm swear, I'm going to give you a piece of my mind!"

As he grumbled to himself, he hadn't noticed Haruichi coming out of his room until they had crashed headfirst into each other.

"Ow, god damn it!" The pitcher cried out, rubbing his sore forehead as his pink haired friend rubbed his own, tears welling up in his eyes that were hidden behind his long, pink bangs. "Ow...Eijun-kun, that really hurt."

"Sorry, Harucchi. I was just thinking about ways to get back at that stupid catcher for what he did to me." Haruichi seemed surprised by the choice of words, but soon found himself giggling softly. "Eijun-kun, how are things going with Miyuki-senpai?"

Eijun growled, eyes turning dark with rage. "They were going fine until he pulled this shit on me!" Haruichi tried to imagine what could have made Eijun so aggravated. An epiphany overcame him; Ryousuke had told him that he'd heard from Kuramochi that Eijun and Miyuki were rooming together for awhile.

"Eijun-kun, are you and Miyuki-senpai-" Eijun had cut him off, not having heard what Haruichi had been trying to say. "I'm going to get back at him for this!"

Eijun took off hastily towards the room that he shared with the catcher, leaving a flabbergasted Haruichi standing there rooted to his spot gaping.

"So it is true! Eijun-kun and Miyuki-senpai really are dating! Satoru-kun owes me a new game now."

* * *

><p>Eijun had nearly forgotten to open the door when he took in a deep breath, ready to yell at the catcher as soon as he walked in. To his disbelief, the catcher was nowhere in sight, though his bags were still sitting out on his bed wide open. "Where the fuck did you go this time? Boss is going to kill me..."<p>

Eijun wasn't one to snoop around in another persons business, but this was Kazuya...depressed, secretive Kazuya who harmed himself.

'_He never actually told me what he uses to cut himself...but I guess it should be in one of his bags...'_ Eijun locked the door behind him to make sure that the catcher wouldn't walk in at any given moment and catch him in the act of going through his stuff. There was no way he would be able to explain why he was even going through the catchers stuff.

Sitting down on the bunk, Eijun pushed articles of clothing around in the bag to see if he could find anything. To his luck, he had found absolutely nothing of interest. As he was about to give up, he noticed a small, silvery object at the very bottom of the bag. Pushing more clothes out of the way, he grabbed ahold of the object and pulled it out carefully.

Eijun examined the object in his hand closely, noting that it was some type of blade; it had a bit of faded blood on it, no doubt being Kazuya's. It struck him like lightening; it was the blade from the little, red handheld pencil sharpener Kazuya had told him was broken.

_'It wasn't broken...you just took the blade out of it...'_ His mind was swarming with different kinds of thoughts, but he had to continue on with the investigation. This couldn't be it; something so little couldn't make such deep gashes on the catchers skin.

Eijun believed that it would be faster to just simply dump out the contents of both bags onto Kazuya's bed. As he searched through the two piles, he noticed that there was a box of bandages mixed in with the catchers toiletries.

"You won't be needing these..." He mumbled, tossing them off the bed and onto the floor somewhere. The one thing he dreaded the most was the razor; Eijun wasn't certain whether he should take it or leave it.

_'Miyuki doesn't really have any facial hair...except for those sideburns...so what do I do with this? I don't want him to use this to hurt himself, but...'_

Eijun stared at the razor in his hands cautiously, uncertain about what he should do with it. He sat it aside for now, throwing all of the catchers clothes and toiletries back into their respected bags.

While he was deciding on what he should do with the razor, the door knob turned three times. Kazuya was back. Eijun froze in his spot, eyes never leaving the door. The sound of the door unlocking was enough to snap him out of his daze. Eijun did the only thing he could do with the razor in his hand, putting it in one of the side pockets of his sweatpants and out of Kazuya's sight.

The door finally opened and in walked the catcher. "Hello, Eijun~" Kazuya greeted him cheerfully. Eijun forced a smile on his face as he "Hello to you too, Miyuki."

"Ready for the trip tomorrow?" Eijun nodded ecstatically, grinning his bright "Of course!" The catcher chuckled at the pitchers enthusiasm,"You'll be sitting next to me on the bus~" Eijun's eyes widened, horrified by what he'd just been told,"Why you!?"

"Coach's orders. He made a seating chart and it seems that we're in front of Youichi and Ryou-san, while Furuya and Kominato are sitting right behind them."

The bus rude _probably_ wouldn't end very well...

"Are you all packed?" Eijun had an epiphany as he'd heard those words; suddenly remembering what he had herb meaning to say. "Miyuki, you asshole! You set me up back there didn't you!?"

The catcher was doubled over on his bed, clutching his sides, laughing so hard that tears had started streaming down his face. "Hahaha, my sides. You totally fell for it as well! I had your stuff hidden on the bunk above yours, but you didn't even bother to look."

Eijun felt his face heat up in embarrassment from the catchers answer. As he climbed up the wooden ladder to reach his stuff in the top bunk, he could practically feel the catchers eyes on him. "Quit staring at me, you're making me uncomfortable!"

Kazuya feigned ignorance. "I wasn't staring at you, honestly." Eijun rolled his eyes at the catcher's answer as he climbed down from the ladder, pulling his baggy shirt to cover more of his body. "Don't act like you weren't. All four of your eyes were glued to me!" Kazuya smirked a bit, tilting his head to the side as if he were trying to get s better view. "Your ass was directly in my field of vision, what else was I supposed to look at?"

Eijun felt his entire face heat up, mortified about what the catcher must have been thinking as he climbed up the ladder. Of all things Kazuya had to look at in the room, he just had to look at his ass? "You could've looked elsewhere!" Kazuya laughed; he was finding it to be rather fun to tease Eijun. "I didn't want to look elsewhere."

Eijun didn't have to look in a mirror to know that his face was probably as pink as Haruichi's hair. Kazuya knew the right buttons to push to embarrass him and was having _way_ too much pleasure in doing so. "I hate you."

"Hahaha, I love you too, Bakamura."

Eijun, startled by Kazuya's choice of words, threw a pillow at the catchers face embarrassedly. "Shut up!" How much longer did he have to stay here?

Kazuya grinned, hitting the pitcher back with the pillow that he'd just had thrown at his face. Kazuya couldn't remember the last time that he'd ever had so much fun doing something so childish, but this was to be expected since it was Eijun who had started it after all.

"This is fun, Eijun! We should do this every night." Kazuya laughed, looking to be enjoying himself as the two whacked each other with the bed pillows.

"Hell no!"

As much as he hated to admit, Kazuya looked almost _breathtaking_ when he was smiling happily.

Eijun wanted to see this side of the catcher more often.

* * *

><p><strong>And that concludes chapter 3~ ^3^<strong>


	4. Chapter 4: Quality Time

Hey, hey~ Thank you all soooooo much for your reviews, faves, and follows. :') They mean the absolute world to me. :'3

Get ready for the longest chapter yet; 8,655 words! I needed to write a timespan of a week 'cause the next chapter has some fluffeh MiyuSawa action in it! ^~^

**_Let's give a big ol' thank you to the beautiful anons, since I can't thank them personally. ;u;_**

**KrakenJumper: Hngg-It almost hurts to see this type of Miyuki-But this is a pretty good story so far! Eijun's a sweetheart! Can't wait to read more.**

_I know, I know! It hurts me too. T_T Eijun really is a big sweetheart! Thank you so much! :D_

**greengrasslover: Oh! The feels! I was panicking hard core when Kazuya was staring at Eijuns butt- I kept expecting Kazuya to be like, ''hey, what's in your back pocket?" And then finding out... Great story so far, its an interesting idea to have Kazuya be the one that needs emotional support (all the stories I've read so far have had Eijun needing help) . Keep up the good work! Can't wait for the next chapter!**

_GGL, you just made me squeal like a little girl. xD Hehe, don't worry, Eijun had put the razor in one of his side pockets. ^-^ Thank you so much! :'D I wanted to be different and address more of twisted Kazuya personally than optimistic Eijun. I needed a character who'd nobody would think,"There's something with him, let's make him tell us." And I chose Kazuya. (I won't go into any more detail since it's a huge manga spoiler.) Thank you for your review! :D Now let me just hug the life outta you~ (I wish I could thank you personally. T_T)_

**Masayuki: MORE...omg miyuki's dad is a total bitch**

_Thanks~ You think he's a douche here, just wait until his "grand appearance" and you'll realize that he's much worse than how the flashback portrays him to be! :o_

**_Remember to R&R, please~ :D_**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4: Quality Time<strong>

* * *

><p><strong><em>~ Day 1: Saturday ~<em>**

* * *

><p>Kazuya had been the first to wake up that morning. Groaning a bit from the sunlight that peaked its way in through the blinds, Kazuya sat up and rubbed his tired eyes. He was still tired from all the pillow fighting that he and Eijun had done up until four in the morning. Eijun had refused to give in, and Kazuya hated to lose, keeping them wide awake until coach Kataoka had paid them a visit. They didn't get yelled at like they had thought Kataoka would do; Kataoka had merely pointed out the time to them, reminding them that they were supposed to be sleeping.<p>

The most challenging part of the morning was how he was going to wake Eijun up. The pitcher was out like a rock and didn't show signs of stirring awake any time soon. Loud snoring coming from the other bunk, a long strand of drool seeping out of Eijun's open mouth.

Kazuya shook the pitchers shoulder gently, trying to see if that would get any awakening signs out of the pitcher. Eijun sat up from the bed, eyes half open in a daze as he turned his head towards the catcher. To Kazuya's dismay, Eijun hadn't woken up...instead, he'd slapped the catchers right cheek harshly, falling back down onto his back and right back to sleep.

"That hurt, Eijun!" Kazuya whispered harshly, nursing his throbbing, red cheek. Eijun hadn't been kidding when he said he could slap like hell. It must be a family tradition.

The last thing he could think of was dragging Eijun out of bed. Standing up from his crouching position, Kazuya grabbed ahold of the pitchers wrists, tugging on them as gently as he possibly could until the pitchers face collided with the rough, carpeted floor.

Eijun sat up groggily, rubbing his sore face in the process. "What...?" Eijun had merely thought he'd fallen out of bed, but seeing the catcher snickering in front of him proved otherwise.

"Miyuki? What just happened?" Eijun asked groggily, unaware of what was going on around him. "Morning, Eijun. It's Saturday, so we have the big trip today, remember?" The pitcher blinked, unsure of what he was hearing.

"We do?"

"It's six in the morning...don't you remember anything?"

"No...it's too early." Eijun yawned loudly as he stretched his arms above his head; his white t-shirt rising up, giving the catcher a glimpse of the pitchers tan stomach.

"We have to get on the bus right about now, so get up."

Eijun nodded slowly, standing up from the bed, about to take off the t-shirt he'd slept in when Kazuya stopped him by grabbing his arms. "You don't have to change, just put on a pair of sweatpants and grab your bags." Eijun continued to yawn as he pulled his bags over his shoulders groggily.

Kazuya chuckled at the site of the pitchers tired face, finding it funny that Eijun wasn't a morning person.

"Hey, hey, come on now. You can sleep all you want on the bus ride over there."

That seemed to wake Eijun up a little.

* * *

><p>As the two got on the bus, Kazuya couldn't help but snicker lightly to himself as he saw most of his teammates sound asleep in their seats.<p>

The one he found the funniest was how Kuramochi was sleeping. Ryousuke had put in his earbuds, leaning his head against the shortstops shoulder sound asleep, while Kuramochi had his head resting against the back of the seat, mouth wide open, snoring rather loudly.

Kazuya wasn't going to miss a chance to get this on camera. He pulled out his phone from his sweatpants and snapped a few photos of the couple sitting behind them, before sending it to the shortstops phone. Kuramochi would kill him for this later when he saw them, but it was a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Eijun had already drifted off to sleep in his spot, leaning his head against the cool window of the bus. Kazuya decided to take a picture of Eijun's sleeping face, figuring he could use it for possible future blackmail later on.

As he sat down next to the pitcher, he noticed how some of the couples on the bus were sleeping; Tetsu was reading a book while Jun had used his shoulder as a pillow; Haruichi and Furuya were leaning on each other, sleeping soundly, hands intertwined in one another's, and then...there was him.

Kazuya was extremely jealous of the other couples, but there was nothing he could do about it. He couldn't just drag Eijun into a relationship he wouldn't be happy with and, as far as he knew, Eijun was straight.

He didn't want to lose being close with Eijun by telling him how he really felt about him, so he kept it bottled up inside; if his father found out, he was terrified that he'd be taken far away from Eijun - the only person who made him feel better about himself - for good.

As Kazuya's thoughts swarmed in his mind anxiously, he hadn't noticed how his hands had started to shake in his lap. As if knowing there was something wrong with Kazuya, Eijun allowed himself to rest his head on the catchers shoulder. "Hmmn...don't worry so much, Miyuki. Just relax and go to sleep."

Kazuya smiled lightly at the pitchers words, nudging Eijun's arm gently as he asked soft,"Hey, Eijun?" The pitcher cracked open his eyes to look at the catcher sitting beside him. "Hmm?" Kazuya took a deep breath before asking,"Can we hold hands?" Eijun felt his cheeks heat up slightly, but closed his eyes while he took the catchers hand into his own, giving it a firm squeeze. "Fine...but only because you asked nicely."

Kazuya hadn't expected the pitcher to actually agree with his selfish request, but his nerves had settled and his thoughts were calm as he thought about the time he'd spent with Eijun up until now.

It was a one sided love, but he wasn't going to complain; holding the pitchers hand was good enough for him.

* * *

><p>Eijun couldn't remember much of the bus ride, since he'd slept the whole way, but whatever he was holding onto was soft and it smelled really nice, like freshly washed laundry. All he wanted to do was snuggle his face deeper into whatever he was holding, but his stomach growled in protest of doing so.<p>

Eijuns eyes slowly opened to reveal what he had been holding onto the whole time..._'What the hell the am I doing clinging to Miyuki?'_ Kazuya's arms being wrapped tightly around the pitcher's waist didn't make the situation any less embarrassing.

As Eijun studied the catchers sleeping face, he couldn't help but admit to himself that Kazuya was something else. The catcher was _far_ from perfect, but that's what Eijun admired about him the most.

Kazuya usually was a rough sleeper; always tossing and turning in his sleep, never quite comfortable in any sleeping position he ended up in. But here he was, sleeping soundly as if he were comfortable in the position he was in.

Eijun shook his thoughts away from his mind, disturbed that he could even think anything weird about the catcher. _'Stop it, Eijun! You're here to **help** him, not **fall in love** with him.'_

As Eijun squirmed in the catchers arms trying to break free, he'd woken Kazuya up in the process. The catcher groaned something incomprehensible under his breath as the pitcher struggled in his arms to break free. "Stop moving..." Kazuya mumbled, tightening his hold. Eijun squirmed even more. "Let go of me and hold your pillow instead, asshole!" Kazuya's hold on him loosened a bit as he nuzzled his face into the crook of the pitchers neck. "I don't want to hold my pillow...I wanna hold _you_." Eijun stopped squirming, blushing at what he'd just been told. "W-Well, still..."

What the hell was he getting so worked up for?

"Just shut up and let me hold you a bit longer..." Eijun knew his face was probably the color of a tomato. What should he do? Let the catcher have his way and savor this moment while it lasted, or shove the catcher off of him and storm out of the room embarrassedly? He chose the former, still feeling rather sluggish due to the lack of sleep he'd gotten from all that childish pillow fighting with Kazuya.

While Eijun was grateful that Kataoka hadn't split them up, he had started to wonder if Kazuya was truly alright with them being together all the time. Eijun knew he had been rather _clingy_ towards Kazuya lately and often followed him around; no matter where Kazuya would go, Eijun would follow him.

As Kazuya slept soundly, arms wrapped tightly around the pitchers waist once more, Eijun had begun to ponder over what they'd be doing while they were at the inn the whole week. _'No baseball for an entire week, huh? I guess it's nice to get away from practice every once and awhile, but did we really have to come all the way out here?'_

Maybe this trip wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

><p><strong><em>~Day 2: Sunday ~<em>**

* * *

><p>"Are you kidding me!? That's the fifth time you've won, Youichi!" Kazuya exclaimed, aggravated by the shortstop winning their fifth round of <em>Two-ten-jack<em>. There wasn't much they could do at the inn, since the internet and cable lines were down. They were out in the country side, so an electrician wouldn't be around to fix the wires for awhile.

The first and second years had tried to ease their boredom by playing card games with the three decks of cards Kuramochi and Kazuya had found in one of the closets while they'd snooped around. The only channels the old TV could even pick up were mostly boring soap operas, childrens cartoons, and the weather channel; nobody was having an ideal time watching those.

Kuramochi grinned mischievously as he shuffled the deck of cards in his hands. "Wanna play again, Kazuya? You might actually _win_ this time." The catcher groaned, falling backwards onto his back, staring up at the stained ceiling. "Fuck no. You're just going to cheat again, Youichi." Kuramochi scanned the room and looked in the direction of the first years, grin never faltering. "Do any of you first years wanna try to beat me?"

They looked at Kuramochi for a split second, before deciding that their boring game of "guess the card" was far more interesting than playing _Two-ten-jack_ with a cheating Kuramochi. They weren't really getting anywhere with the game, but at least it took their minds off the boredom of being in the inn.

"Kawakami, come play with me! You're the only one who hasn't played against me yet!" Kazuya felt a bit of sympathy for Kawakami as he was dragged into playing _Two-ten-jack_ against Kuramochi, but he was the only one who hadn't played against the shortstop yet.

Kazuya decided to join the first years in their thought provoking game of "guess the card". Eijun was scowling at everyone, frustrated that he'd been standing up for the past five minutes and none of them had even guessed close to the card he was holding.

Kazuya laughed a bit, knowing full well what card the pitcher was holding. "I know what card it is." Every one of the first years turned their heads towards the catcher, staring at him intensely with their bright, wide eyes. "It's the _**ace of spades**_, right?" Eijun nodded, fed up with the fact that his fellow first years couldn't have guessed it. "Finally, _somebody_ got it right!"

Haruichi and Furuya were amazed by the catcher getting the right answer. Exchanging looks of disbelief that they hadn't thought about the card Eijun had. "Miyuki-senpai, how exactly did you know what card Eijun-kun had?" Kazuya flashed them his infamous, classic grin. "It's Eijun's favorite card; it has the word **_ace_** in it." Eijun felt a blush creep up onto his face, embarrassed that the catcher had revealed the secret on why that card was his favorite.

"What the hell!? Kawakami just cheated me out!" Kuramochi's voice rang, causing everyone to turn their attention towards the two. Kuramochi had _finally_ lost at _Two-ten-jack_, and he wasn't too pleased about that. Kawakami looked utterly terrified as the infuriated shortstop accused him of cheating.

"Cut it out Youichi, you're scaring him. If you're really such a sore loser, then keep playing against Nori until you win."

That seemed to spark something up in the shortstops mind. Flashing the poor sidearm pitcher an evil grin, Kuramochi bellowed,"I'm gonna make you regret beating me, Kawakami!"

Kazuya turned back to the first years, who were now building a house out of cards, and asked,"Have any of you fully explored the place yet?" Eijun shook his head, placing a card on top of the ones in the middle of the card house. "Nope. Boss told us that we aren't allowed to go fully exploring around the inn until the third years were done with their studying." No wonder everyone was bored; the only places that they weren't restricted access too were their rooms, the kitchen, bathrooms, and the lobby they were in.

"How many hours we been here exactly?" Eijun groaned, causing everyone to chuckle lightly to themselves. "At least five hours, Eijun-kun." Eijun grimaced, looking ready to shrivel up and die on the hard, cold, wooden floor at any given moment. "This is so boring! When will the third years get done studying!?"

That seemed to be everyones question. "Just be glad that we're first years, Eijun-kun." Haruichi remarked, delicately placing one of the cards on the very top of the card house. Eijun sighed deeply for the tenth time that day, falling forwards to lay on his stomach as he observed everyone busy in their activities. "I really wanna play baseball...even if it's just _fielding_ practice."

With a laugh of triumph - Kuramochi finally winning his game against Kawakami - Kuramochi had decided that they should test something out that he'd been dying to know ever since head arrived at the inn. "Anybody wanna see if a pizza will actually deliver all the way out here?"

With a simple press of a button, they had ordered three large pizzas - one cheese, pepperoni, and sausage - to be delivered to them out in the middle of absolutely nowhere.

* * *

><p>"Man, that pizza guy has a long drive ahead of him." Eijun remarked as he patted his belly happily, feeling quite content after his third slice of cheese pizza. Kazuya laughed as he imagined the scene unfolding out in his head, feeling a bit sleepy after eating two large slices of pepperoni pizza. "Well, at least he got paid; money is pretty much all that matters to them."<p>

Everyone was feeling tired after their long day of traveling to the inn, playing cards against one another, and eating the pizza that they'd all pitched in and bought, that they decided to go to sleep earlier than they'd expected.

Eijun, Kazuya, and Kuramochi returned to the room they were sharing together to get ready for bed. "Ryou-san's gonna be pissed that we went to sleep already, but I'll deal with him later. I'm tired and not in the mood to wait for him to return."

Kazuya snickered into his hand, eyeing the shortstop interestedly. "You're just mad because you lost to Nori at _Two-ten-jack_." Kuramochi scowled at the catcher, picking up one of the nearby pillows, throwing it at the catchers smirking face. Leave it to Kazuya to piss him off once more tonight. "I lost _once_; unlike your _five_ straight losses!" Kazuya pouted a bit, crossing his arms against his chest, glaring harshly at the shortstop standing in front of him. "That's because you cheated!"

A heated argument erupted in the room about who cheated and who was a sore loser, and Eijun didn't bother to try to break it up, instead, he just drowned out their shouting by using his headphones to listen to music on the highest volume that his iPod could go up too.

It wasn't until Kataoka had appeared in their doorway, unimpressed by how ridiculously loud they were being, that things finally quieted down. "You two do realize that your teammates are trying to study in the room down the hall, correct?" Kazuya and Kuramochi nodded hastily, both terrified of having to feel the wrath of Kataoka.

"Yes, sir." They said in unison, hoping Kataoka would leave them in peace. Both of them were shaking so hard out of fear that their teeth were starting to chatter inside their mouths. "If I hear any more noise from this room tonight, I will not hesitate to separate you two and leave Sawamura and Kominato here." Neither the catcher nor the shortstop liked that idea at all, so they hastily agreed to be quiet.

"Damn, I think my heart stopped right when he stared straight into our eyes. It felt like he was staring directly into our souls."

Kazuya let out a breath he'd been holding; he'd nearly forgotten how to breath when Kataoka had abruptly shone up in their room. "I seriously thought for a second that we were being demoted back down into the second string."

The sound of light snoring caught their attention. Looking down at Eijun, who'd already fallen asleep, Youichi piped a question that took Kazuya off guard. "You like Sawamura, don't you?

Kazuya adverted his eyes from the shortstops perceptive gaze. "It's just a hopeless crush. Whatever I feel towards Eijun is simply one-sided and I can't give him the kind of love that he'd expect me to give unconditionally."

Kuramochi had fallen silent, processing what the catcher had said. "I don't think Sawamura would care if you're not the best guy in the whole fucking world."

Kazuya shrugged it off, shaking his head slightly. "Eijun doesn't deserve to be with someone like me; I'm the most arrogant person on this team. He deserves to be happy with someone else."

Kuramochi opened his mouth to retort, but the door to their room opened up, ending their conversation. Kuramochi felt the corners of his lips turn up slightly into a small smile as Ryousuke entered the room, tossing his bag aside, and settling down on the futon next to the shortstops.

"I guess we'll call it a night, Youichi." Kazuya said as he stretched his arms above his head, removing his glasses and setting them aside as he proceeded to settle down on the futon next to the pitchers.

* * *

><p><strong><em>~ Day 3: Monday ~<em>**

* * *

><p>"So, where should we start our exploration?" Kazuya asked, looking around the inn in great wonder. Eijun had been stuck with Kazuya - all the other first years had mysteriously partnered up overnight - and they were standing alone in one of the dimly lit hallways that connected to the main building.<p>

Eijun shuddered a bit, feeling extraordinarily paranoid of going any further into the deepest, darkest part of the old inn. For whatever odd reason there was, the catcher seemed quite curious about the older section of the building and wanted to explore every inch of it thst he possibly could.

"Um...maybe we should go back?" Eijun suggested, not wanting to go any further than they already were. They were standing at the entranceway of the old inn; the door was wooden and rotted out in severely parts of it, seeming that if you just blew on it, then the whole damn thing would fall apart at any given second. "C'mon Eijun, let's start by exploring down here. I'll hold your hand if you're scared~"

The pitcher felt every hair on his body stand up as he followed the catcher down the dimly lit hallway; the dirty lights that hung low from the ceiling flickered on and off with slight buzzing noises emitting from them; the sounds of the floorboards creaking under their weight, and the fact that there weren't any windows in the hall were key essentials to every horror movie he'd ever seen.

As they explored every room, Eijun felt shivers going down his spine. The rooms were old, smelled terribly, and we're extremely dusty; they'd probably been unused since the day the newer part of the inn was built. A loud, rumbling sound was heard overhead and Eijun froze in his spot. "What was that?" Kazuya shrugged, still continuing his walk down the hall in search for another unexplored room. "Thunder, I think."

As the two ventured even further down the hallway, a loud clap of thunder echoed outside of the inn, causing the pitcher to jump out of fright. Eijun had never been a fan of thunder, or thunderstorms in general. Whenever there was a thunderstorm at Seido during the night, Eijun would pop his earphones in and crank up the volume on his iPod. But he'd left his iPod and earphones in his bag back in the room.

Before either Kazuya or Eijun could say anything, the lights went out, causing the hallway to become pitch black.

Eijun stood there frozen to his spot in complete silence, terrified that if he moved or uttered a single word, whatever was hiding in the darkness of the inn would come out and get him. He gulped a bit, feeling his heart start to race in his chest and the sweat that had started to trickle down his face. He knew that it was such a childish thing to fear the dark, though whenever he was alone in a dark room, he just couldn't help but imagine what was lurking in the shadows.

A faint light from a cellphone broke through the darkness and revealed Kazuya's worried face. "Eijun, there you are! I thought I'd lost you in here." Eijun wanted to be relieved that the catcher had found him, but he didn't want the catcher to see him in such a childish state.

"Eijun, what's-" before Kazuya could finish his question, Eijun had latched onto him, buried his face in the catchers shirt, and sobbed like a child.

Eijun had expected the catcher to shove him off or laugh at how childish he was being, but was surprised to find that none of that happened; the catcher stroked his hair gently, like how a mother would do as she tried to calm her child down.

"Shh, shh...it's okay, Eijun. I'm here, don't cry."

As the catcher held the sobbing pitcher in his arms, he decided that it was best that they head back and wait for the power to come back on. Eijun wasn't looking too good being here in the darkness while a thunderstorm was happening outside.

After Eijun had finally monster to calm down, Kazuya made sure to keep the pitcher close to him, resulting in them holding hands again, much to the pitchers disapproval.

Making their way back to the main building wasn't hard, getting back in from the outside was the problem. "It seems like we're stuck out here..." Kazuya grumbled, fiddling with the doorknob until it had come off in his hands.

The two stared at it, unsure of what they should do. "Hey Eijun, do you know how to pick a lock?" Eijun stared at the catcher in shock. "No, I thought that you would know how, because it seems that you can do anything you set your damn mind to!"

Kazuya scowled in frustration, rubbing his temples as he felt a headache start to form. "Now what are we gonna do? We're locked out of the inn...in the middle of a thunderstorm...just our luck." Eijun looked up at the windows on the second floor and noticed how there was one halfway open. "Maybe one of us can crawl in through the window and unlock the front door?" Kazuya looked up at the window and nodded in approval. "Sounds good. I'll give you a boost so you can get up there."

Before the pitcher could even react, he felt the catchers strong arms wrap around his waist as he was hoisted up from the ground and up near the roof. "Climb up there, go in, and unlock the front door."

Eijun carefully crawled up the roof, trying not to slip, as he very cautiously slide the window open a bit more as he climbed into the room. It was a storage closet of some type; a bunch of boxes were stacked neatly in the corner with a thick layer of dust covering them.

It was dark, but Eijun knew he had to overcome this fear to help the catcher out. As he trudged down the dark and empty hallway, he reminded himself over and over,_'Relax, there's no such things as monsters...you'll be fine; it's just a little further.'_

Eijun wanted to take his mind off of the darkness of the hallway, so he thought of the one thing scarier than the darkness...the time he'd made Kazuya angry. The catcher was terrifying when he was angry, and Eijun couldn't think of anything else scarier than that.

He finally reached the front door and unlocked it, allowing the soaked catcher to come inside.

"I guess everyone got caught in the dark and decided to make great use of it. While I was standing out there, the walls of the older part of building were creaking so badly that I thought they'd fall apart."

Eijun felt a blush creep up onto his face as he imagined what the catcher had just described. "Really...?" Kazuya yawned a bit, patting Eijun's head for all the good work he'd done. "I'm tired, so let's head to the bath and then call it a night."

Eijun had thought that he was used to being alone with Kazuya, but he was so flustered taking a bath with the catcher that he merely kept his eyes shamefully downcast; he didn't want to get caught staring at the catcher in an inappropriate manner.

As the two finished up their bath and got dressed for bed, the hall that connected to the rooms that the baseball team members were staying in was completely empty. The only other people who hadn't gone exploring were Chris and Tanba, busy studying in their room with a flashlight they'd found in one of the inn closets.

"Let's inform that we're back...or at least inform them that we're the only ones who bothered to return from "exploring"." Kazuya commented as he tapped the sliding door.

Chris answered the door and noticed that it was just Kazuya and Eijun. "Ah, Miyuki and Sawamura, what are you two up too?"

Kazuya pulled the pitcher closer towards him and smiled at the older male. "We're about to head off to bed, so we just dropped by to inform you that we're back."

After saying their goodnights to the other two, Kazuya pulled Eijun across the hall and over towards their room. The two collapsed onto one of the futons; Kazuya draping an arm across the pitchers stomach as he lay on his side observing the pitcher. "What should we do tomorrow to get back at everyone?" The catcher asked mischievously, a devious smile forming on his face.

Eijun yawned sleepily before quietly murmuring,"Twister." Kazuya let out a light chuckle, not wanting to disturb the pitcher as he closed his tired eyes."We don't have a spinner or a mat." Eijun had already drifted off to sleep, not having heard a single word the catcher had said.

"If you want to play Twister, then I'm all for seeing our teammates cringe in pain as they move around, hahaha."

* * *

><p><strong><em>~ Day 4: Tuesday ~<em>**

* * *

><p>Kazuya had spent the whole night making the placement cards for their version of Twister, resulting in him hardly getting any sleep. He fought back yawns as he and Eijun sat at the breakfast table with the other members of the baseball team.<p>

"Kazuya, don't sleep! You'll end up getting food on your face." Kuramochi snickered, obviously liking the fact that the catcher was too tired to argue back. If it weren't for Eijun being his perky, optimistic self, he'd assume that _something_ had happened between them last night while they were alone.

"Shut it, Youichi. You'll get your payback in a minute." The catcher mumbled, resting his head in his hands as he tried not to drift off to sleep.

"Oh, I'm so scared." Kuramochi commented as a smirk formed on his face. Kazuya flashed a sinister grin at the shortstop. He'd noted the weird posture of Kuramochi's and decided to point it out. "You're sitting _pretty_ strange, Youichi. Did someone have it a little _too_ rough last night in one of the dark, empty rooms?"

Kuramochi's face flushed a deep red as he thought back to the events of what he and Ryousuke had been up to last night. "Shut up! Knowing you and Sawamura, you two did some kinky shit in there!" Eijun looked at the shortstop confused, blinking a bit as he innocently asked,"What do you mean by "kinky shit", Kuramochi-senpai?" Before the shortstop could explain, a sharp glare from the catcher shut him up.

There was no way in hell he'd let the shortstop ruin Eijun's innocence...at least not for now.

As they finished up their candlelight breakfast, Kazuya had them all follow him to the lobby where he had a very special surprise waiting for them.

To most of the first strings horror, Kazuya's surprise had been a handmade version of Twister.

"Eijun suggested it, so why not play it?" Kazuya asked, a smug look on his face. He was ready to see Eijun win this game; it wasn't because they were one of the few who'd actually used the nighttime to sleep, but mainly because of how flexible the pitcher was.

"Who wants to go up against Eijun?" Kazuya scanned the entire room until he found the perfect two candidates. "Jun-san, why don't you and Youichi show Eijun just how to play Twister?" As the two paled over a bit, reminiscing about the events of last night, Kazuya could only sit back and enjoy the moment while it lasted.

"Alright...Youichi, right foot on green." Kuramochi smirked to himself; this game would be easy. All he had to do was make sure he didn't have to bend over.

Kazuya couldn't help but grin maliciously as he called out the next move. "Jun-san, right hand on red." The shortstop and catcher wore identical grins as they watched the center fielder's face scrunch up in pain as he placed his right hand on the red, cutout circle.

It was Eijun's turn now. "Eijun, right hand on yellow."

As the catcher began to call out more moves, Kuramochi was already biting his lower lip to keep himself from letting out a hiss from the tremendous amount of pain he was in. He'd already made Jun fall, so all that's left is to make Eijun fall.

Kazuya called out the last move and that was it, Kuramochi had lost his balance and ended up falling onto his sore butt. The catcher couldn't help but burst out into manically laugher at the sight of the shortstop cringing in pain on the floor.

Kuramochi had the perfect payback for the catcher. He pulled Eijun close to him and whispered the scheme into his ear, making the pitcher a bit nervous. "B-But won't he get mad?" Kuramochi shrugged, not really caring if Kazuyanot mad or not. "It's you, so he probably won't stay mad for long."

Eijun gulped as he slowly walked over to the catcher. "Congrats, Eijun. I knew you'd win." Eijun felt a blush slowly creep up onto his face as he looked the catcher straight in the eyes, and then...

"What the fuck, Eijun!? Give me back my glasses!"

Eijun had swiftly taken the glasses off of the catchers face and then proceeded to run off down the hall to avoid having to feel Kazuya's wrath.

Kazuya had extremely terrible vision and so he often ran into things as he tried to pursue his chase after Eijun down the dark, blurry hallway.

As much as he hated to admit, he was actually having a blast as he spent more time being around the pitcher.

Now if only he could get his glasses back from Eijun.

* * *

><p><strong><em>~ Day 5: Wednesday ~<em>**

* * *

><p>"What should we do today?" Kazuya mused, bored from the fact that they were already three days into their trip and the power still hadn't been fixed yet.<p>

"Let's tell horror stories." Kuramochi said, a grin flashing on his face. They had the darkness of the inn and a flashlight to dimly light up the room, creating an eerie atmosphere. Kuramochi held the flashlight up to his face, a wide, sinister grin sprouting on his face, as he proceeded to tell the story of the _Kuchisake-onna._

Eijun was quivering with fear, unsure of whether he could even move from his spot next to the catcher.

Their horror stories had ranged from _Kuchisake-onna _to_ Red Room_. Eijun had found it difficult to come up with anything, so he decided to sit out and just listen.

As everyone headed back to their rooms, Eijun couldn't stop shaking even as he laid on the futon trying to fall asleep.

"Eijun, what's wrong? Why aren't you asleep?" He heard Kazuya whisper to him in the darkness of the room, trying not wake the other two in the room up.

"Nothing! Go back to sleep!" He mumbled as he turned over on to his side in order to face away from the catcher. Eijun didn't want to admit that he was scared of not only the dark, but ghost stories as well.

"You're scared from hearing all those ghost stories, huh?" Eijun felt his cheeks heat up, mortified the catcher had discovered another childish secret of his. "No, who would be scared of something as silly as that?" Eijun tried to deny, but found it harder to do when he was shaking in fear.

"Obviously you. Don't worry so much about it, they're just stories." He could feel the catcher move a bit closer to him, slowly rubbing small circles in his back soothingly. "If you're scared, you can cuddle with me." Eijun would've yelled at the catcher if it weren't for the fact that Kuramochi and Ryousuke were asleep.

"I'm fine." Kazuya chuckled at the pitchers embarrassment. Nuzzling his face against the pitchers back. "Think of something scarier; that should help you fall asleep." The catcher mumbled softly as he fell asleep next to the pitcher. _'Hmmm...what's more scarier then **Kuchisake-onna**?' _He wondered to himself, as he started to drift off. '_That's right...Miyuki hating me is.'_

* * *

><p><strong><em>~ Day 6: Thursday ~<em>**

* * *

><p>"So...when is the power gonna be fixed? We've sat in nothing but darkness since Monday." Eijun complained, obviously frustrated with the fact that it's been four days and the power was <em>still<em> out.

"We could play a game?" Haruichi suggested as he placed a card down on the floor in front of him. "Your turn, Satoru-kun."

"Haven't we played every single game we know of?" Eijun mumbled as he placed one of his cards down on the floor face up.

"Miyuki-senpai isn't awake yet?" Furuya asked, eyeing the cards in his hands. Eijun scowled and shook his head."No! That damn, four eyed bastard decided to sleep in!"

Haruichi smiled at the pitchers answer, finding it to be rather adorable that Eijun often talked about Kazuya."Eijun-kun, you and Miyuki-senpai look good together." Eijun raised a brow at his friends comment, confused by what he meant. "What do you mean by that, Harucchi?"

"You two are dating, right?" Haruichi asked curiously, wondering if he was mistaken. Eijun didn't scrunch up his face in disgust, instead, he blinked dumbfounded as he tried to come up with an answer to the question. "No. Miyuki's just one big mystery after another."

Haruichi and Furuya glanced at each other confused. "How so, Eijun-kun?" Was there something going on between the catcher and pitcher that they didn't know about? "Well..." Eijun scanned the room to make it was only the three of them and shut the door tightly.

The two stared at Eijun, unsure of if they wanted to actually hear what the pitcher had to say. Eijun took a deep breath and whispered to them,"Miyuki...well...he has an addiction...it's self harming and Boss put me in charge over him to help him get through it, but it's just so damn hard when he's constantly spazzing out, teasing me, or gone off to God knows where."

Haruichi and Furuya exchanged looks of concern for Eijun as he told them everything. "Eijun-kun, how do you feel about being with Miyuki-senpai all the time?" Eijun was taken slightly aback by the question, unsure of how he should answer it.

"I guess it's rough at times, but...I don't hate it..."

Being with Kazuya all the time wasn't as bad as he thought it'd be. They had their ups and downs, but Kazuya seemed to be a bit more relaxed then how he used to be.

"Yo Eijun, I can't believe you're up before me!" The catcher remarked, as he stumbled into the room, still unsure of where Eijun had hidden his glasses.

"You freaking swatted my hand away, rolled over, and mumbled something about needing five more minutes! I just let you sleep in because it looked like you needed it."

Kazuya blinked a few times, rubbing his eyes to make sure that he was really looking at Eijun. "Are you really Sawamura Eijun? You're acting a bit _too_ nice."

Eijun scowled at the catcher, turning his head away to face the clock on the wall. "Says the guy who can't find his glasses." Eijun hadn't hidden them out of sight for anyone with normal vision; Kazuya had terrible vision though, so it created a bit of a challenge.

"You know that I can't see without them, Eijun."

Eijun was enjoying every second of seeing Kazuya struggle to find his glasses. "They're in the most obvious spot."

"You enjoy tormenting your poor senpai, huh?" Kazuya muttered, thinking up ways that he'd get payback for Eijun hiding his glasses.

"Only if it's you." Eijun replied without hesitation as he rolled his eyes at the oblivious catcher.

"Oh how you wound me, Eijun." Kazuya joked, unaffected by the pitchers words.

In the end, Eijun decided to give the catcher his glasses back, fearing what the catcher would do to him in his sleep if he didn't.

* * *

><p><strong><em>~ Day 7: Friday ~<em>**

* * *

><p>As the storms cleared off, the baseball team had decided to step out of the inn for a bit of fresh air. Staying cooped up in the inn all day hadn't done them any good; they were dying to go outside and get out of the stuffy inn.<p>

"It's our last day here; what should we do?" Kuramochi asked as he scanned the blue sky for any dark, gray clouds to make sure they wouldn't have any more thunderstorms.

"Maybe we could hike up the mountain and back?" Haruichi suggested as he looked up towards the mountain trail. The mountain near the inn was about a twenty minute hike up and back down if you were cautious and followed the trial closely.

"Not a bad idea, Haruichi. We'll go in pairs of two." Ryousuke mused as he eyed the shortstop standing not too far from him. "_You-i-chi_~" The shortstop grinned, taking his spot next to his partner. "Kyehaha, whoever has the shortest time wins."

Kazuya felt a smirk form upon his face; there was no way in hell he'd lose to Kuramochi this time or he'd _never_ hear the end of it from the shortstop.

As they headed up the mountain trail, Kazuya decided to strike up a conversation with the slow pitcher waking alongside him. "So Eijun, what are your old friends like?" Eijun felt a small smile form on his face as he thought of his old friends back in Nagano. They supported his decision in coming to Seido and there was no way he'd ever let them down. "They're great. They were really supportive in me coming to Seido and not joining them at their school." Even through the emotional goodbyes at the station as they wished Eijun good luck, Eijun knew that he'd made the right decision at coming to Seido.

Kazuya noticed how happy the pitcher seemed when he talked about his old friends that he'd left behind in Nagano. He couldn't help but wonder what exactly they were like in person. "So Miyuki, what are your old friends like?"

Kazuya paused in his movement, unsure of how he should address the question. He'd never made many friends or hung out with anyone outside of the baseball field; all but one person... "Well...Mei was really fun to be around both on and off the field, so we were pretty close friends until we separated to go to different high schools." Eijun frowned a bit; Narumiya Mei was the only person Kazuya was even bothering to tell him about...Kazuya obviously didn't get along too well with some of the people he'd went to middle school with.

"So Eijun, is Wakana really your girlfriend?" Kazuya already knew the answer; he just liked to see the pitcher get frustrated over it. Eijun felt his face heat up as he scowled at the catcher. "NO! How many times do I have to tell people that she isn't my girlfriend!? I don't even like her in that sort of way!"

Miyuki smirked, turning around swiftly to face Eijun. "What about Yoshikawa?" Eijun sighed in annoyance, rolling his eyes in the process. "Look...she's really pretty, nice, and she's also my friend, but we aren't together!"

As the catcher began to make him more frustrated, he suddenly had a epiphany as he thought of Wakana. "Miyuki, why do you think Kuramochi-senpai replies back to Wakana?"

Kazuya snickered lightly to himself as he continued his lead up the mountain trail. "Youichi is actually very thoughtful of others, believe it or not. He probably replies to her so she won't have to worry so much about your well being."

Eijun had never thought of it that way. He'd always thought that Kuramochi texted her back just to annoy him.

As they were nearing the top of the mountain, Eijun's right foot had ended up in a gopher hole, causing him to stumble and lose his footing, crashing down into the rough dirt face first. Kazuya instantly turned back around, startled by the sudden yelp Eijun had let out just before he had fallen. "Eijun, are you okay?" Eijun mumbled something incomprehensible under his breath as he carefully pulled his foot out of the hole. The intense, throbbing pain shot through his ankle like a needle. There was no way he'd be able to walk back down the mountain. "Are you hurt anywhere?" The catcher noticed how the pitcher was rubbing his right ankle a bit.

"I'm fine, but I hurt my ankle when I fell." He admitted as he tried to soothe the severe pain spreading through his right ankle. "Let's head back, you should let Rei-chan have a look at it."

Before Eijun could inform Kazuya that he couldn't walk, the catcher had wrapped his strong arms around his legs and lifted him up onto his back with ease, as if Eijun weighed nothing more than a simple feather. "I don't want you to damage your ankle more; you're a valuable asset to our team, remember?"

As they headed back down the mountain trail, it had started raining once again. Kazuya cursed slightly under his breath. The sky had been cloudless when they'd left, why did it have to rain now, of all the possible times? "Damn, I thought that we were done with rain." Eijun was getting soaked from his position on the catchers back, but he didn't mind it, just as long as they would be heading back to the inn.

"Do you see the inn yet, Eijun?" The pitcher raised his head up a little over the catchers mop of light brown hair, but there was still no sign of the inn; all he saw was a dirt road and a bunch of cornfields on either side of them.

"Not yet." He heard the catcher sigh as he continued to walk further down the road. Eijun wrapped his arms tighter around the catchers neck, fearing he'd fall off if Kazuya loosened his grip on his legs. "Am I too heavy for you?" Eijun mumbled quietly, feeling embarrassed that he was probably slowing the catcher down. "Not at all. Eijun, you're not slowing me down. It's just a bit difficult to walk with all this mud on the road."

As the rain bag begun to pour much harder, a faint light appeared in the distance, catching the pitchers attention. Squinting his eyes to see better, he could make out a few figures standing near the inn. "Miyuki, I think we're almost there."

As they found themselves closer to the light source, a loud voice rang out,"There they are!"

Kazuya had to admit, being with the pitcher brought about new surprises every day, but he wasn't complaining; being with Eijun was fun.

* * *

><p>After Eijun had gotten his ankle checked out - thankfully it was only a sprain - he settled down the futon next to the catchers; his bandaged foot propped up on a pillow poking out from underneath the red blanket. Everyone else had gone to bed, but Kazuya had stayed up to talk to Eijun.<p>

"Hey Eijun, guess what?" Eijun mumbled something under his breath as he turned over to face the catcher who was laying a bit too close to him. "What?" The catcher had a wide smile on his face as brought his hands up towards his mouth to muffle his laughter. "I had a lot of fun with you this week."

Eijun felt himself slowly smile as he thought of the events that had taken place during the week. He had to admit, he had fun being with Kazuya. "I'm glad that you had fun, Miyuki." Kazuya looked much healthier when he smiled; he wanted to see Kazuya happy more often.

"By the way, what happened to my razor?" Eijun felt his heart stop at that very second; he could very well break out into a cold sweat due to the horror he was facing. _'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit...I'm so dead right now...'_

"What razor?" He asked innocently, hoping the catcher wouldn't catch on to him. "The one that was in my toiletries bag." Kazuya wasn't going to give up so easily; Eijun would just have to force him to. "You had a razor in your toiletries bag?"

With a sigh, Kazuya gave up on trying to get an answer out of the pitcher, knowing full well that Eijun had probably hidden it somewhere in their dorm. "Never mind, sorry for asking."

Even though Eijun was that determined to make Kazuya give up on cutting, it was easier said than done.

* * *

><p><em><strong>And there we go! Chapter 4 is complete!<br>**_

_**R&R please~ ^^**_

_**There will be a bit if MiyuSawa in the next chapter, so stay tuned~**_

_**Okie~ Let's address some things!**_

_**Two-ten-jack**: a Japanese trick-taking card game for two players that takes its name from the three highest-scoring (and lowest-scoring) cards in the game: the 2, 10 and Jack in three different suits._

_**Kuchisake-onna**: she appears as a tall woman in a trench-coat with long, black hair. Her most telling feature is the surgical mask covering the bottom half of her face._

**Go look Kuchisake-onna up if you're curious about her. **

_**Red Room**: an interactive Adobe Flash horror animation, entirely in Japanese, about an urban legend called "the Red Room". The protagonist searches on the Internet for proof of its existence, only for the results to go horribly wrong._


	5. Chapter 5: Promise

**Hey, hey, heeeey~ Thank you all soooooo freaking much for your reviews, faves, and follows. :') They mean the absolute world to me. :3**

**THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER EVER! 10,822 words... :O**

**Remember to R&R~**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five: Promise<strong>

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><p>Eijun could tell there was something up with the catcher. Kazuya always seemed to have his eyes on him during practice and it was really starting to annoy him. Everywhere he'd go, the catchers eyes followed his every movement. Eijun often found it hard to concentrate on his pitching when the catchers eyes were staring directly on his ass when he raised his leg up in the air during his pitching stance.<p>

"Can't you look at something else _besides me_ for once?" He asked irritably as he threw the ball to the catcher who caught it easily in his glove. "That's too much effort. Besides, I like what I see."

Eijun felt his cheeks heat up as the catcher grinned at him from his crouching position. "Shut up." He couldn't deal with the catcher acting so damn affectionate towards him. It was really starting to make him wonder if the catcher had caught something.

"So Eijun, we should make use of the movie tickets Youichi gave me." Kazuya said, throwing the ball back to the red-faced pitcher. "When?" He didn't have any plans, other than finish up on reading his chapter of _Kimi ni Todoke_, so he was free anytime. "After practice; the tickets go bad by midnight."

"I guess I have time." Eijun mumbled, making the catcher grin in triumph. "Great! We'll make it a date then~" Kazuya chuckled, seeing how Eijun tried to cover up his embarrassment by pitching a few more times.

"That's enough for today, Eijun~ You better hurry or else you'll be late for our date." Kazuya remarked, causing the pitcher to glare at him in embarrassment. The others in the bullpen merely wished him good luck as the two left the bullpen.

* * *

><p>Eijun fiddled with the hem of his t-shirt, trying to relax as much as he could. He'd never been on a date in his life, so he had little idea about how to make it successful.<p>

"Eijun-kun, calm down. You're just going to the movies." Haruichi sighed, seeing how Eijun nervous was. Eijun had confided in Haruichi about not having dated, having the pinkette come to his room and help him get ready. "I know, Harucchi. It's just...this is the first time I'm going to be alone with Miyuki in public."

Haruichi chuckled lightly to himself, patting the pitchers back comfortingly. "Miyuki-senpai likes you a lot, Eijun, so he won't do anything reckless." Eijun was a bit oblivious to the type of like Kazuya had for him, so he shrugged it off as just a friendly senpai/kouhai like.

"I can't believe that he said it was a date. We're just friends, that's all." Haruichi frowned, seeing as how oblivious Eijun was to the fact that Kazuya wanted to be more than just friends with him. "You'd better get going, Eijun-kun. Miyuki-senpai's probably waiting for you."

Eijun looked himself over and thought that he looked decent enough to be seen out in public with someone like Kazuya. An old baseball t-shirt, faded out jeans, and a new pair of sneakers were all he needed to be comfortable.

As he waved goodbye to Haruichi, his mind swarmed with thoughts about the movie. Kazuya had promised him that they weren't going to be seeing anything horror related, since Kuramochi had said there was nothing good playing, so they would be seeing a comedy instead.

Kazuya had been waiting for him at the entrance and smiled when he saw the pitcher dressed casually. "I was wondering what was taking you so long. You look great in jeans." Kazuya commented as he looked Eijun over. In truth, he liked the way the clothes perfectly fit the pitchers body; not too lose or too tight. "T-Thanks..." Eijun mumbled, feeling his cheeks light up a bit.

Kazuya had just complimented his appearance...

* * *

><p>As the two walked into the movie theater, Kazuya pulled him over towards the concession stands. "What do you want, Eijun? I'll pay for it." Eijun couldn't decide on what he wanted; the snack menu was endless, so he just went with popcorn with extra butter on it and a small coke.<p>

"I'll hold the popcorn, Miyuki." Eijun said as he took the large popcorn from out of the catchers arms. Kazuya was carrying two, large drinks in his hands; Eijun really didn't want the catcher to drop anything, it'd be a complete waste of the catchers money. "That's nice of you, Eijun." Kazuya said as he smiled at Eijun warmly. Eijun couldn't explain it, but he felt his heart flutter ever so slightly when he'd received the smile from the catcher.

As the two found a spot in the middle of the theater, Eijun felt even more nervous. Sure, he was use to being extremely close to the catcher, but they weren't out in public then. They were always near the other guys on the baseball team. As the movie started up, Eijun tried to relax as much as he could, taking small sips from his coke to ease his mind. It didn't help that when he reached for the popcorn that sat in between them, his hand slightly brushed against Kazuya's.

Eijun knew that Kazuya wanted to hold his hand, since their hands kept brushing against each other's more than once to be called a mere coincidence, so he excused himself to go to the restroom to wash the butter off of his hands.

* * *

><p>After washing his hands off, Eijun exited the restroom and was about to head back when he'd bumped into a group of guys standing outside the bathroom door. The words died in Eijun's mouth as he stared up at the group. Not even coach Kataoka came close to scaring him this badly; by their wild, punk-like appearances, these guys meant trouble. "Look at what we have here, guys." The leader of the group said as he smirked at the pitcher.<p>

"Ohhh, the poor, little thing is shaking." Another one mocked, seeing how Eijun was trembling in fear.

"He sure is a cutie. Maybe we'll just have to break this cute, innocent face of his." Eijun felt every hair on his body stand up as the group towered over him like the giants they were. He was too scared to say anything as he was roughly pushed down on to the hard ground. Not even when he'd faced Azuma had he'd been _this_ terrified.

Eijun shut his eyes tightly, hoping that whatever happened to him would be quick. To his surprise, nothing happened. Not even a single touch. Eijun cracked open an eye to see what the hold up was and noticed that the group had turned their attention away from him and towards someone else.

"Get the fuck away from him." Kazuya's tone dripped with venom as he stood his ground in front of the group; a dark, merciless expression etched out on his face. Eijun never seen this side of the catcher before; not even when he had accidentally insulted Chris in front of Kazuya.

"Oh shit, it's Miyuki Kazuya!" One of them exclaimed, fearful that if they stuck around any longer that they'd be in trouble. Kazuya was known to linger around town with some of the other guys on Seido's baseball team, if Kazuya was here, then the others were probably loitering around as well. "Shit, this kid must be his boyfriend or something, let's get the fuck out of here!" As the guys fled the scene in a cowardly manner, Eijun somehow managed to find his voice.

"T-Thank you, Miyuki." Eijun whispered, low enough so only Kazuya could hear him. The catcher sighed softly and bent down to look the pitcher in the eye. "Are you okay, Eijun? They didn't hurt you, did they?" Kazuya asked, worriedly, as he frantically looked Eijun over. There didn't seem to be any outer damage, but Kazuya was more worried about Eijun's mental state.

"I-I'm fine now." Eijun's shaky voice reassured him. It was just his luck to ruin their outing. It was supposed to have been a day just for the two of them to relax and have fun with each other, and Eijun had to go and ruin it for them completely.

Eijun hadn't expected to be pulled into a firm hug from the catcher. Being in the catchers arms made him feel safe and at ease. "I'm glad that you're safe. I was so worried when you didn't return back." Kazuya murmured, as he held on to the pitcher tightly. Eijun felt his lower lip tremble as he thought of what would have happened to him if Kazuya hadn't intervened. This was going to come back in his nightmares sometime soon.

He wrapped his arms loosely around the catchers back and let his tears fall to the ground, silently. "I'm sorry that I ruined our outing..." He apologized, hoping the catcher would forgive him. Kazuya shh'd him, stroking Eijun's hair in a comforting way as he tried to soothe the trembling pitcher. "Shhh...Eijun, it's alright. We'll do this again some other time."

No matter what Kazuya said to him, Eijun just couldn't help but feel terrible for the ordeal that ruined their outing. Even on the way back to Seido, Eijun clung on to the catchers arm, tightly. He feared that if he let go for even a split second, he'd run into the group again.

* * *

><p>"Eijun-kun, are you alright?" Haruichi inquired, noting how Eijun didn't seem his usual cheerful self today. Eijun was too quiet for his own good; there was something that Eijun definitely wasn't letting him know. "I'm fine, Harucchi. Don't worry about me."<p>

Haruichi frowned and walked closer towards Eijun, knowing there was clearly something wrong with him. "What's wrong, Eijun-kun?" Haruichi asked, worriedly, taking hold of the pitchers hands rough in to his own soft ones, giving them a light squeeze.

"I ruined my outing with Miyuki..." Eijun confided, feeling the tears well up in the corner of his eyes as he thought back to yesterdays events. Haruichi raised a brow under his hair, unsure of what Eijun could mean by that. "How so, Eijun-kun?"

Eijun took a deep breath before he told Haruichi all about the events of the earlier day, making Haruichi gasp a bit in shock. "Are you alright, Eijun-kun!? They didn't hurt you, did they?" Haruichi questioned him, making the pitcher shake his head, easing the pinkette of his worries. "No...Miyuki scared them off before they could do anything. But, I still feel bad for causing him so much trouble, though..."

Haruichi gave Eijun's hands another light squeeze. "If you really feel like it's all your fault, maybe you can just make it up to Miyuki-senpai?" Eijun seemed to brighten up a bit, eyes regaining their usual shine. "How?"

Haruichi thought to himself for a moment. "Hmmm...what does Miyuki-senpai want the most from you?" Eijun shrugged, unsure of what Haruichi was getting at. "My hands, probably. He always wants us to hold hands and it's really embarrassing."

Haruichi chuckled at Eijun's answer, finding it to be rather adorable that Eijun could think of something like that. "What else?" Eijun could only think of one other thing. "Cuddling, I think." Haruichi smiled warmly at Eijun, gently patting the pitchers left shoulder as he motioned towards the catcher on the other side of the bullpen. "Miyuki-senpai seems to be having a rough day today, so why don't you try to make him feel better?"

Eijun turned his head over towards the exasperated catcher, who was currently berating a bemused Furuya, and sighed to himself in defeat. "I guess that'll have to do. Thanks, Harucchi."

* * *

><p>Afternoon practice ended and night time was falling rapidly. Kazuya had been in a pretty bitchy mood since he and Eijun had woken up extremely late that morning, not having made it to morning practice on time, and having to run laps around the field while the rest of the team practiced.<p>

Kazuya had finished up the last of his homework, muttered a simple goodnight to the pitcher, and turned off the light before he climbed into his bed, ready to sleep off the aggravation from the days events.

Eijun took a deep breath, a bit nervous to wake the catcher up from his sleep. Kazuya was rather grumpy when awoken, and Eijun didn't want to worsen the catcher's mood more than it already was. "Miyuki?" Eijun softly called out in the dark, causing the catcher to turn over to face him questionably. "What's wrong?" Eijun clutched his pillow to his chest tighter? "Do you...want to cuddle?" Eijun was thankful for the darkness of the room so Kazuya couldn't see his pink-tinted cheeks.

"Yeah...come over here." Eijun got up from his bed and walked over to the catcher's before lifting up the covers and squeezing himself in next to Kazuya. Eijun could feel his blush spreading across his face as he laid next to the catcher in the small bunk that was only meant for one.

"Can I hold you?" Kazuya's husky voice murmured, causing the pitcher to slowly nod his head, giving the catcher permission to do so. Kazuya pulled the pitcher closer towards his chest, wrapping his strong arms around Eijun's waist and smiling to himself as he felt the pitcher slowly start to relax in the embrace.

Kazuya had fallen hard for Eijun. He wanted nothing more than to go further than being just friends; he wanted to sneak kisses with Eijun during practice; he wanted to hold him close to him; go on dates together, but most of all...he didn't want to worry about being in a relationship with Eijun and having his father find out.

The one thing that Kazuya feared the most was what his father would do to him once he found out that his son had fallen in love with another guy.

* * *

><p>Eijun paced around the bullpen as he waited for Kazuya to show up for afternoon practice. When he finally did, Eijun knew there was no going back once he did what he about to do.<p>

Kazuya forced a smile on his face as he stepped into the bullpen, stifling back a yawn behind his gloved hand. "Hey, Eijun." Kazuya's tone sounded tired and Eijun could tell he'd hardly gotten any sleep last night.

Eijun stepped forward and stood in front of the exhausted catcher. He was going to get Kazuya to admit that there was something wrong. Eijun thought back to how Haruichi would help him or Furuya admit that they had a problem. Eijun grabbed a hold of Kazuya's glove-less hand and held it in his own, much like how Haruichi would do with his or Furuya's.

"What are you doing, Eijun?" Kazuya asked cautiously, unsure of what Eijun was doing to his hand. "What's wrong, Miyuki?" Eijun asked softly, giving the catcher's hand a light squeeze as he looked directly into Kazuya's hazel colored eyes.

"Nothing's wrong..." Eijun squeezed a bit harder; he wasn't going to fall for Kazuya's bullshit lies. "We're friends, Miyuki. You can tell me anything." Kazuya stared at the pitcher for a moment before sighing in defeat. "You're right; we are friends...my dad's been given me hell lately and he wants to come to one of our games..."

Eijun could only imagine what Kazuya had to go through dealing with his father; there was only so much Kazuya could take of his father and Eijun knew it. There had to be something he could do to help the catcher out. "You need a break from all this, Miyuki." Eijun stated simply, causing the catcher to look at him confused. What did Eijun mean by "you need a break"? The whole baseball team had a break from practice a couple of weeks ago. "Didn't we just go to the inn for a week?" Eijun shrugged a bit, unsure of how he should put it. "I was just thinking that, maybe, we could go and visit my family out in Nagano, since we do have this weekend off from practice."

Kazuya smiled at him warmly, feeling a bit touched by the pitchers random act of kindness. "They won't mind?" Eijun shook his head with a goofy smile on his face. "Nah, my folks will _love_ you, since you are all that I ever tell them about." Eijun hadn't noticed the slight blush that had appeared on Kazuya's cheeks as he'd said those words. Was he really _that_ important to the pitcher? "Well, I guess that it wouldn't hurt to go meet your family, Eijun." Kazuya replied, his smile widening as he thought of what Eijun's family was like.

"Great! I'll let my parents know that we're coming to visit them!"

* * *

><p>No matter how much Kazuya tried to push away the negative thoughts, his mind swirled around things relating to Eijun's friends and family.<p>

_'Are they nice? Will they even like me? What if they tell Eijun that I'm in love with him? Oh God, what if they're like dad and think that I'm some sort of freak? What if they-' _Kazuya's thoughts were cut short when he felt a hand roughly land on his shoulder, snapping him out of his daze.

"Kazuya, what are you doing staring off into space like that?" Kuramochi asked with a light snicker as he sat down backwards in the chair, resting his elbows on the catchers desk.

"Hmmm...Eijun invited me to go spend the week with him out in Nagano and I'm not so sure if his friends and family will like me once they figure out that I like Eijun as more than just a friend." Kazuya murmured, staring down at the open score book out on his desk.

Kuramochi scowled and leaned in closer to flick the catcher in his forehead, ignoring the fake whine Kazuya gave him. "You're over thinking things, Kazuya. Wakana-chan is pretty nice, so I think all of Sawamura's other friends are nice as well. You make up most of the text messages that Sawamura sends out to her. They'll have to like you."

Kazuya felt a bit reassured, but he was still a bit uncertain that Eijun's friends would like him. "What are you doing for the weekend, Youichi?" A grin formed upon the shortstops face as he thought about his plans. "Ryou-san and I are going back to my hometown for the weekend."

Kazuya smirked mischievously at Kuramochi as his dirty mind processed the information he'd been given. "Oho, you're traveling to Chiba with Ryou-san, huh?"

A bright red blush formed upon the shortstops face as he realized what the catcher was implying. "I live in a fucking apartment complex, with the thinnest walls in the entire world, you ass! My folks have wanted to meet Ryou-san for a while, so we're heading down there, since his brother and Furuya are heading back to their home."

Everyone on the team knew that Ryousuke didn't like Seido's very own monster rookie dating _his_ little brother. He was extremely opposed to it, often berating Furuya when Haruichi was completely out of earshot. It never helped the poor couple that Kuramochi often joked about them getting married and Ryousuke making the poor pitcher's life a miserable, living hell.

"So, what do you plan on doing with Sawamura down there?" Kuramochi asked curiously as he eyed the catcher. Kazuya could only shrug in reply, unsure of that himself. Eijun had only said they would be doing "country" things. "I don't know, really. But, knowing Eijun, we'll be doing something fun."

As their lunch break ended, Kazuya could only hope that what Kuramochi had said would be true.

* * *

><p>Friday finally came and Eijun was ecstatic. He had texted his parents the night before about bringing home a friend for the week and they had agreed, saying they'd be preparing an extra spot at the dinner table just for Kazuya.<p>

"Are you ready? The train leaves soon, Miyuki!" Eijun chirped, excited to finally be able to bring home a friend from Seido. It wasn't like he hadn't meant to, it was just that when he had off days like this, he liked to spend them at school, practicing his pitches, or at the arcade, in the city, with Furuya and Haruichi.

"I'm ready, but are you sure we need all this stuff? We're only going to be there for three days and two nights, silly." Kazuya remarked as he lifted the pitchers heavy bag up on his free shoulder.

"Of course! I'm taking you fishing, after all." Eijun replied with an enormous grin plastered out on his face. Kazuya could only chuckle lightly as he thought of himself fishing with the pitcher at a lake or small creek. How would that even work out for them?

"See ya on Sunday, Kazuya!" Kuramochi called out, waving a quick goodbye with his hand as he swiftly followed Ryousuke off campus. Kazuya could only smile and wave his hand back as he watched his best friend leave his sight.

"Bye, Eijun-kun. Have fun with Miyuki-senpai." Haruichi chirped, pulling a Furuya alongside him. "Bye, Harucchi! Furuya, you better not let him out of your sight, you hear me!?" Eijun exclaimed, hoping that the pitcher wouldn't ignore him. Haruichi was tiny, so it easy to lose him in crowds. The last time they'd lost Haruichi, the two pitchers had run a muck around the entire building - not wanting to go back to campus and face Ryousuke's wrath of losing his younger brother - until they had finally found Haruichi, still playing one of the video games he had yet to beat the high score of. T

Furuya's eyes widened as he thought of all the possibilities of Haruichi getting hurt and him having to feel the wrath of Ryousuke. Furuya instinctively wrapped an arm around Haruichi's tiny shoulder, causing the second baseman's face to turn as pink as his hair.

"Don't worry so much, Eijun-kun; Satoru-kun will be with me. I'll make sure to call you when we get to my place."

After saying goodbye to Haruichi and Furuya, Eijun looked at Kazuya and grinned. "Let's get going, Miyuki. my parents are probably waiting for us."

As Kazuya followed Eijun, he couldn't help but smile at the fact that Eijun was looking forward to spending time with him. He hadn't had the urge to cut, not since Eijun had moved in with him, brightening up his gray world with every little thing he did.

* * *

><p>As they were sitting on the train, heading out towards Nagano, Kazuya noticed that Eijun had trouble sitting still for long periods of time. "How on earth did you make it from Nagano all the way to Tokyo anyway? You can't seem to sit still." Kazuya joked, causing the pitcher to pout a bit as he tried to ease himself of his extreme boredom. "I'm bored! I left all of my favorite manga series back in the dorm."<p>

Kazuya snickered lightly at Eijun's pouting face, finding it to be irresistibly cute. "You're so adorable when you pout, Eijun." Eijun's face turned bright red and he swiftly turned his head away from Kazuya, thinking that he was just merely teasing him.

_'Damn, Eijun sure is clueless.' _Kazuya was pretty certain that he hadn't made it a secret that he was crushing hard on Eijun; pretty much everyone knew about it as well, however...Eijun was more oblivious to the catchers sayings and affections toward him that he just brushed it off as simple teasing.

_'Eijun, you're really adorable, but you're so damn dense.'_

* * *

><p>When they finally reached their destination, Eijun and Kazuya stepped off of the train and into the crowded station. Eijun yawned loudly as he stretched his arms over his head, giving Kazuya a perfect view of the pitchers tan stomach.<p>

"So Eijun, what's the first thing that you're gonna do when we get to your home?" Kazuya asked as they carefully weaved their way through the crowded station together; Kazuya allowing Eijun to guide him. "The first thing I'll do, huh? I'm not sure."

As the two walked down the paved road, Kazuya noted how much smaller Eijun's town was in comparison to the large, Tokyo city. It truly was farm country, after all.

"My home is just up ahead." Eijun pointed out as he picked up his pace, dragging the catcher by his sleeve. The first thing that Kazuya noted was that Eijun's family lived in a house on a farm, and not an apartment in the city, like how his father did back in Tokyo.

Eijun opened the front door to his home and called out a quick,"I'm home." before taking both his and Kazuya's bags upstairs to his room, leaving Kazuya standing alone in the doorway, feeling a bit nervous now that Eijun had left him.

"You must be Eijun's friend; Miyuki-kun was it?" Eijun's mother asked, smiling at how quiet he was. From what Eijun told them, Kazuya wasn't exactly the quiet, shy type of guy. "Ah, yes...that's me, Miyuki Kazuya." Eijun's mother invited him in, walking him towards the living room, where she introduced him to Eijun's father, Eiji, and grandfather, Eitoku.

"This is Miyuki-kun; he's one of Eijun's teammates." Eijun's father looked the catcher over from head to toe until he had come to a conclusion. "Eijun sure chose a good one. How long have you two been dating, Miyuki?" Kazuya was taken aback by Eijun's father's question, a bit embarrassed to be asked such a question. How was he supposed to answer that?

Eijun, who had overhead the question, slammed open the door to the room to the living room and glared harshly at his father. "Dad, what the hell is your problem!?" Eijun's father merely laughed as he shook his head. "There's no need to be shy about having a boyfriend like Miyuki, Eijun. You know that we'll support you, no matter if you like girls or boys."

Eijun's face flushed bright pink as he fumbled with words to say in retort to what his father had just said. "We are **NOT** dating!" Eijun's family laughed at his reaction. "Eijun dear, we love you a lot and we're glad that you found someone you're interested in. We really don't care that Miyuki-kun is a boy. As long as he treats you well and makes you happy, we're perfectly fine with it." His mother reassured him, trying to hold back her laughter at her son's retort.

Eijun's face couldn't get any redder then it already was, so he merely grabbed a hold of Kazuya's hand, getting a couple aw's from his mother and father, and pulled him out of the room, mortified that his family had just said those things in front of Kazuya.

* * *

><p>"Your room is nice, Eijun." Kazuya commented as he sat down on Eijun's bed, observing the room covered in baseball posters and pictures of all his old friends. "Are you tired, Miyuki?" Kazuya smiled a bit, knowing Eijun had caught on to his fatigue from all the traveling. "Hmm...just a bit." Eijun looked at him for a moment before resorting his attention back to unpacking his stuff. "You can go to sleep on my bed if you want."<p>

Kazuya's eyes widened; he was going to be able to sleep in Eijun's room? On _his_ bed, too? "Really? I'm perfectly fine with-" Eijun's glare cut him off in mid-sentence. "My family seems to really like you, so I can't let you sleep on the couch." Kazuya had no complaints as he let himself fall backwards on to the bed.

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Eijun sighed, irritated by the catchers question. "Of course, I don't mind! You look like you haven't slept in days, so the least I can do is let you sleep on my bed."

Eijun sorted through their stuff and noticed that Kazuya hadn't packed a razor or any other type of sharp object with him. Eijun knew he was making some sort of progress with Kazuya as he watched the catcher sleep soundly on his bed.

_'I'm glad that Miyuki is getting some rest for a change. He's been really out of it since we got back from the inn.'_

Eijun carefully and quietly made his way out of his room, not wanting to disturb the catcher's sleep, and down the stairs to see if he could help his mother out with any chores that needed to be done. "Eijun, what are you doing down here?" His mother asked, surprised that he wasn't upstairs with Kazuya. Eijun shrugged, picking up the full laundry basket with ease, setting it atop the washing machine. "Miyuki's asleep, so I just came down here to see if I could help you with anything."

Eijun's mother smiled a bit as she pulled some clothes out of the dryer. "I would like to have you run to the store for me, but I'd also like to know more about your relationship with Miyuki-kun." Eijun knew his mother wouldn't give up the subject of him supposedly dating Kazuya.

"Mom...we are just friends, teammates, schoolmates, and he's my catcher...nothing else is going on between us." Eijun stated, a scowl permanently etched on his face. "You can't blame me for thinking that, Eijun. Miyuki-kun is such a good guy. He's the perfect guy that I'd be proud to say my son is in a relationship with." His mother replied with a small smile on her face.

Eijun rolled his eyes as he stepped out of the room to go run the errand his mother had requested. The grocery store wasn't too far walk from his home, so maybe he'd see a few friends while he was in town.

* * *

><p>Kazuya woke up to the smell of freshly cut grass; it reminded him a lot of Eijun. Kazuya slowly opened his eyes to the late evening sunlight peeking in from behind the blinds on Eijun's window near the bed.<p>

Kazuya sat up and rubbed the sleep from out of his eyes a bit to allow adjust them to the dimness of the room. He felt around for his glasses, finding them tucked underneath the pillow, and put them on. "Where's Eijun...?" He pondered aloud, searching around the room for the pitcher but found no trace of him being there.

Kazuya felt the corners of his mouth turn down, forming a frown. He stood up from the bed and walked over to the door, careful not to trip over one of Eijun's belongings. As Kazuya was about to open the door, he noticed something laying out on Eijun's desk.

Kazuya wandered over to it and noticed it was a baseball magazine, opened to a page all about him. "So, you really did come to Seido because of me, huh? I'm so flattered, Eijun." Kazuya chuckled, setting the magazine back down on the desk.

Kazuya walked out of Eijun's room and looked around the hallway, uncertain of where the pitcher was at. As he wandered around the second floor hallway, looking in every open room for Eijun, he had run into Eijun's father. "Ah, you're Eijun's boyfriend...Miyuki, right?" Kazuya felt a small blush creep up on his face; Eijun's father had just called him Eijun's boyfriend. At that very moment, Kazuya knew that he had found the perfect guy to fall in love with; Eijun had such a loving family.

"Um...we aren't dating sir..." Kazuya managed to say, hoping Eijun's father wouldn't question why. "Oh? But you do like my son, right?" Eijun's father had high hopes for his son, and he wasn't going to let Kazuya walk out of Eijun's life. "I don't like your son, sir..." Kazuya started, a wide smile forming on his face as he finished his sentence with,"I'm in love with your son~"

Eijun's father grinned as he placed one of his colossal hands on the catchers shoulder. "Welcome to the Sawamura family, kid! I, Sawamura Eiji , will be looking forward to the day when you and my son finally get together." Eijun's father announced, making the catcher grin.

"Thank you, sir." Eijun's father patted his shoulder a bit roughly. "You're a great kid, Miyuki. So, were you looking for Eijun?"

"Oh, yeah, I was." Eijun's father laughed a bit. "Eijun is running an errand for his mom in town, so he'll back soon."

Kazuya thanked him as he headed down the stairs to see if he could help Eijun's mother, or grandfather, with anything. As Kazuya turned the corner of the hallway, he had crashed into a certain pitcher.

"Ah, I'm sorry, Eijun." Kazuya exclaimed, noticing the spilled groceries on the floor. Eijun rubbed his sore forehead, waving off the catchers apology with his free hand. "It's fine, Miyuki." As Kazuya helped Eijun pick up the groceries from off the floor, their hands brushed against each others, sending shivers down Eijun's spine.

"I like your dad, Eijun. He's pretty cool." Eijun scowled a bit, knowing full well that his father had opened his big mouth had blabbered something he probably shouldn't have. "What did he say to you!?" Kazuya laughed as he thought back to the conversation he had had moments ago with Eijun's father upstairs. "Oh, nothing really."

Eijun didn't believe that it was simply nothing, but shrugged it off since he probably didn't want to know what their conversation had been about.

* * *

><p>After eating dinner, Eijun dragged Kazuya out of the house to go meet his friends. Kazuya's stomach did flip-flops as he tried to keep up with Eijun's pace.<p>

"Eijun, it's great to see you again!" Wakana exclaimed as she hugged Eijun. "It's good to be home." Eijun said as he grinned, widely. "Guys, this is my teammate, Miyuki-senpai." Kazuya was surprised that Eijun had added senpai to his name, but greeted everyone in the most friendly way possible.

Eijun's friends seemed to be curious about Kazuya as they questioned him endlessly. Eijun watched as Kazuya answered their questions in full detail, never leaving a single thing out.

As it grew darker out, Eijun noticed how Kazuya would try to stifle his yawns as he answered questions. "Guys, it's getting late out and Miyuki-senpai and I have to go back to Seido Sunday morning."

As Eijun said his goodbyes to his friends, he walked slowly by Kazuya's side, hoping that the catcher wouldn't fall asleep while they were walking.

When they finally made it back to Eijun's place, Kazuya rubbed his eyes, trying to stay awake as best he could. "You can just head on upstairs and go to bed, Miyuki. I'll be up in a few minutes." The catcher was too tired to insist on Eijun coming to bed as well, so he nodded his head and walked up the stairs to Eijun's bedroom. Kazuya changed into his sleepwear, a white t-shirt and his boxers, and climbed into Eijun's bed, slowly drifting off to sleep.

Eijun had just finished up showering and changing into his sleepwear when he stumbled upon Kazuya fast asleep in his bed. _'I can't kick him out...he's a guest and that'd be rude. Gramps would slap the shit outta me if I allowed him to sleep on the couch...'_ Eijun pondered over what he should do until he had come to a decision. _'I guess we'll just have to share...like we did that one time back at the dorm.'_

Eijun slightly nudged Kazuya a bit to make him move over and crawled in to bed beside him. The catcher had nicely warmed up his side of the bed, making Eijun let out a slight sigh in content. "Goodnight, Miyuki." Eijun whispered, turning off the light and letting his head hit the pillow he was currently sharing with the catcher with a soft thud. "Goodnight, Eijun." Kazuya murmured back, turning over to face the pitcher.

"What the hell? I thought you were asleep." Eijun murmured, trying not to be too loud or it would give his family a reason to come upstairs to check on them. "I was, but you woke me up when you entered the room." Kazuya whispered, a small smirk on his face as he pulled the pitcher's body closer towards his own.

"I woke you up?" Kazuya sighed, closing his eyes as he nuzzled his face in the pitcher's brown locks. "You did, but it's fine."

As Kazuya drifted off into a blissful sleep, Eijun just couldn't fall asleep. _'Does Miyuki like me...? He's so damn affectionate...but I guess he's like this with people he's pretty close too.'_

Eijun was a bit confused about his feelings for Kazuya; while he admired the catcher to no end, he also grew to like him more than he should.

_'How do you know when you have a crush on someone anyways? I'll have to ask one of the senpais or Harucchi...'_

* * *

><p>The sunlight streaming in from behind the blinds woke Eijun up from his deep slumber and he noted that his head was laying on the catchers chest. Eijun could hear Kazuya's heart beating in his chest; it was a soothing sound, almost lulling him back to sleep.<p>

Eijun felt a smile form on his face as he observed Kazuya while he was sleeping. Kazuya's light brown hair stuck out in random places and Eijun tried to hold back a laugh as he notes that Kazuya had terrible bed hair.

Kazuya had a tight grip around his waist, making it nearly impossible for Eijun to move. "Miyuki, let go of me." Eijun murmured, squirming to break free from the catchers hold. "Why?" Kazuya asked with a yawn, making Eijun scowl. "You're squeezing me and it hurts." Kazuya sighed and unwrapped his arms from around the pitchers waist and turned over to go back to sleep.

"I always thought you were a morning person, Miyuki." Eijun snickered, watching as the catcher snuggled deeper into the blanket. "When there's practice, yes. But since we don't have practice, I'm catching up on my rest."

Silence filled the room and Eijun decided to ask the catcher a question. "Miyuki, who's had the longest relationship on the baseball team?" A chuckle came from the catcher. "Obviously, Tetsu-san and Jun-san. I'm pretty sure that they've been together since their first year. Jun-san knows _**everything**_ about Tetsu-san."

Eijun's eyes widened in surprise. "Seriously?" Kazuya turned over to face the pitcher and smiled, tiredly. "Of course." Before Eijun could say anything else, he felt the catcher's hand pinch his cheek a bit. "You're so adorable...you know that?"

Eijun almost fell off the bed in embarrassment. "W-what!?" The catcher laughed a bit. "You heard me, I said just you were adorable. But, I guess that all idiots like you are adorable."

Eijun scowled and stood up, gabbing his phone from off of the nightstand. "You're such a twisted person!"

As Eijun trudged down the stairs towards the bathroom, he decided to call Haruichi back since he had forgotten that the pinkette had called him.

"Harucchi, are you awake?" The voice on the other end of the line was a bit groggy, but still sounded happy to hear him._** "Eijun-kun, how are you!?"**_ Haruichi's voice on the other end chirped, bringing a grin to the pitchers face. "I'm great, Harucchi. How are you and Furuya doing?"

A giggle escaped Haruichi's lips. **_"Satoru-kun is busy with my parents. They've already met Kuramochi-senpai before, so now they want to get to know Satoru-kun."_**

Eijun could only imagine what the monster rookie was going through at the moment. "How is your brother and Kuramochi-senpai doing?" Haruichi sounded like he was trying to hold back laughter. **_"Aniki says that Kuramochi-senpai has some very nosy neighbors." _**Eijun burst out into a laughing fit, hoping he wouldn't wake his family or Kazuya up.

"I'm so glad that I live on a farm. We don't have any neighbors that close to us." He could almost see Haruichi smiling on the other end of the line. **_"I know what you mean, Eijun-kun. So, did you need something?" _**Eijun had almost forgotten what he had meant to ask,"Huh? Oh yeah...um...what's your definition of love?" Haruichi nearly dropped the phone in his hands.

**_"Love? Err, let's see...I think it's when they're the last thing you think about before you go to sleep and the first thing you think of when you wake up." _**Eijun nodded slowly taking a piece of paper and a pen to jot down what Haruichi's definition of love was. "Thanks, Harucchi."

As he hung up the phone, Eijun decided that he'd do something nice for the catcher since Kazuya was a guest in his household.

* * *

><p>Kazuya woke up to the smell of something burning. At first, he assumed the house was on fire, before he noticed that the house was still standing. Kazuya grabbed his glasses and put them on as he headed out of the room to go investigate where the source of the burning smell was coming from.<p>

The smell of something burning became more prominent as he neared the kitchen. When he opened the door, he was greeted with thick, black smoke. Once he saw the source, he felt the corners of his mouth turn up into a smirk. Standing in front of the stove was Eijun trying - and failing - to cook.

Kazuya crept over towards the pitcher and wrapped his arms around the pitchers waist, like how a husband would do to his wife as she made breakfast. "Eijun, what are you doing?" Kazuya's husky voice whispered lowly in the pitchers ear, causing him to jump and turn bright red in embarrassment.

"M-M-Miyuki...what are you doing here!?" Kazuya laughed a bit, leaning against the table as he tried to make out what exactly was in the pan. "The smell of something burning woke me up, so I came down here to investigate. If you really want to learn how to cook so badly, I'll teach you~"

Eijun couldn't look the catcher in the eye as Kazuya had just discovered that he couldn't even cook a simple breakfast. Eijun sucked at many things, but cooking was something he simply failed at.

Kazuya pinched Eijun's nose and laughed as the pitcher tried to swat his hands away. "Do you still think I'm adorable even though I can't cook?" Eijun mumbled, close to tears. He wanted to do something nice, since Kazuya was his guest, but it turns out, he just caused a major problem. Kazuya blinked, finding it hard to believe that Eijun was getting worked up over not being able to cook. With a warm smile, he gently wiped away the tears that had formed in the corner of the pitchers golden eyes with his thumb. "Don't worry, you still are, silly~"

Kazuya walked over to the stove, looking down at the burnt food in the pan, trying to decipher what it once had been. "So...were you trying to cook breakfast or something?" Eijun was a speechless for a moment until he finally admitted, in defeat, that he had indeed tried to make breakfast."Yeah...it was supposed to be for you, but..."

The catcher smiled and ruffled Eijun's hair with a laugh. "You're so considerate, Eijun. But next time, I'll do the cooking."

* * *

><p>After a well cooked breakfast - courtesy of Kazuya - Eijun decided that he should take Kazuya fishing and see just how terrible he was at it.<p>

"We're going fishing, Miyuki." Eijun exclaimed, grabbing a hold of the catchers arm and pulling him out of the house. "What are we gonna use for fishing?" Kazuya asked, unsure of what Eijun had meant by going fishing. He was a city guy, how in the hell was he supposed to even know how to fish?

Eijun stared at the catcher as if he had just admitted to murdering someone. "We're going to use fishing poles, what did you think we were gonna use? Our hands?"Eijun dug around in the storage shed until he found two fishing poles. He handed one over to Kazuya and lead him down the trail behind his house, down towards his favorite fishing spot.

Eijun's fishing spot was just a simple wooden bridge on the side of a big lake; a perfect spot to relax and fish. "Sit down, I'll help you bait your hook." Kazuya could only watch in horror and disgust as Eijun jammed the worm through his hook, not once, not twice, but **three** times.

Eijun handed the pole over to Kazuya who took it in his hands slowly, trying to grasp the basics of why he had agreed to do this in the first place. Eijun showed Kazuya the correct way to cast his line and the two soon just sat there, on the wooden dock, in silence; only the sounds of wildlife could be heard as they waited for the fish to bite.

Kazuya was beginning to drift off when suddenly-

"Holy shit, Eijun! Help me!" Kazuya had gotten a bite, panicking over how it was trying to tug him off of the bridge. Eijun struggled to help the catcher reel in the fish, resulting in Kazuya falling into the lake.

"Miyuki, are you okay!?" Eijun was about to jump in to rescue the catcher when Kazuya submerged from the water, coughing up the water that had entered his mouth and nose, soaked completely to the bone.

"I'm really sorry, Miyuki." Eijun called out, extending a hand to help the catcher out of the water. "Don't be, a little water never hurt anyone." Kazuya assured, grabbing a hold of the pitchers hand and pulling himself up on to the wooden bridge, shivering a bit from the wet clothes he had on.

"But you're soaked." Eijun remarked, eyeing the wet clothes with concern. "I can shower when we get back." Kazuya reassured him, removing his shirt in the process. Eijun was taken aback as he saw the catchers well toned, muscular body up close. If it weren't for the scars that lingered across Kazuya's wrists and arms, he'd be perfect for the cover of a men's fashion magazine.

"Like what you see, huh?" Kazuya asked, a devious smirk plastered on to his face as he caught the pitcher staring at his body. "W-What!?" Eijun stuttered out, mortified that he'd been caught in the act.

As they walked back to his house, Kazuya piped a question. "So Eijun, what's your dream partner like?" Eijun had to think long and hard on that. "I guess someone who's smart, nice, and gets me..."

Eijun finally worked up the courage to say the last part of his sentence. "Someone like you, Miyuki."

* * *

><p>Eijun's mother was horrified when she saw the two return home; Kazuya dripping wet and having all those self inflected scars on his arms and wrists didn't help either.<p>

"Miyuki fell in the lake, mom." Eijun explained, hoping she wouldn't question him about the scars. Eijun knew Kazuya was self conscious about the scars, ashamed of having inflicted them upon himself. "Oh Miyuki-kun, you poor thing. Go hop in the shower and I'll prepare some tea to warm you up."

Eijun sat at the kitchen table, watching his mother prepare tea for Kazuya. "Eijun, he's a really nice kid, you know that? His parents must be proud to have a son like him." Eijun could only nod, a frown prominent upon his face as he thought of what Kazuya's home life must have been like.

When Kazuya appeared in the doorway, Eijun could notice how he was still shivering, even after taking a hot shower and getting into warm clothes. "Here's your tea, dear. I hope it'll warm you up." Kazuya's hands shook ever so slightly as he picked up the cup of warm tea, bringing it up to his lips and taking a small sip out of it.

"Thank you, Sawamura-san." After a few more sips, Kazuya didn't want anymore, so he thanked Eijun's mother for the tea again and proceeded to head up to Eijun's bedroom.

"I hope he's not getting a cold." Eijun's mother remarked, worried about the health of her son's friend.

Eijun could only hope so as well.

* * *

><p>Morning came and Kazuya looked horrible; his eyes were red and puffy; his nose was running, and his face dripped with sweat. "Miyuki, c'mon. We need to head back to Tokyo today! We have practice tomorrow morning, remember!?" Eijun exclaimed, frustrated by the fact that Kazuya had yet to get up.<p>

"Ugh, leave me alone, Eijun...I feel like absolute shit." Kazuya's scratchy voice replied. He'd caught a cold from falling into the lake and felt absolutely miserable. Everything bright hurt his eyes and any sudden noises added on to the pounding headache he had.

Eijun somehow managed to bribe the catcher into getting up and dressed to go. As they were leaving, Eijun's mother handed him a bottle of water and medicine. "Miyuki-kun may develop a fever on the way back, so use this to bring it down."

As Eijun pulled Kazuya alongside him to the station, he only hoped that Kazuya would sleep through the trip back.

Eijun pulled the catcher down next to him on the seat and allowed the catcher to use his shoulder as a pillow. "I'm just ready to go back to Seido and sleep." Kazuya mumbled, feeling drained off all his energy.

As they traveled back to Tokyo, Eijun could feel the heat radiating off the catchers forehead, seeping into his neck. With a frown, Eijun pushed the catcher's bangs out of his face and felt how hot his forehead was. That was never a good sign. "Miyuki, wake up." Eijun nudged Kazuya, hoping it'd wake him up. "Hmmn...what?" Kazuya asked groggily, wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep.

"You may want to take this, it'll lower your fever." Eijun suggested as he dug around in his bag, pulling out a bottle of water and fever reducing medication.

"Fine, hand them over." Eijun carefully handed the water and medicine over to the catcher, who scrunched up his face as he took the medicine. "Blegh, who knew that pills could taste so revolting?" Eijun snickered lightly into his hand. "You should try to rest until we get back to Tokyo."

Kazuya complained for a good whole three minutes about not being sick and needing to rest until he finally wore himself out, ending up using Eijun's lap as a pillow. Eijun was too engrossed with a new app he'd downloaded that he didn't even notice the extra weight on his lap.

When they finally reached their stop, Eijun shook the catcher, who still sleeping on his lap, awake. "Miyuki, we're here. We have to get off, it's our stop." Kazuya groggily sat up, a bit delirious now that the fever medication had worn off.

As they walked out of the station, Eijun had literally had to hold on to the catcher's body to keep him upright. Embarrassing as it was, he didn't want the catcher to fall over and wind up in the middle of a street; Kataoka would surely get on his ass if he did.

* * *

><p>Eijun was exhausted by the time they'd reached Seido. Kazuya wasn't exactly a lightweight, so he had mustered up all his strength to support the catchers weight on the walk back to campus.<p>

It seemed that luck was on his side for once as he noticed Haruichi and Furuya sitting on the stairs. "Guys...help me...please!" Eijun pleaded in between breaths; the two looked at each other, sharing looks of concern, before they went over to help Eijun support the catchers weight.

"What happened, Eijun-kun?" Haruichi asked, draping one of the catchers arms around his shoulders as he helped Furuya out. "Miyuki fell in the lake when we were fishing and this is the result."

Eijun didn't feel like having his friends carry Kazuya up the stairs, so he decided to head back to his old room that he shared with Masuko and Kuramochi.

Eijun decided to knock first, to see if anyone was in there, and sure enough Masuko was there. "Welcome back, Sawamura-chan." Eijun smiled at his roommate's warm welcome. "Masuko-san, can Miyuki stay in here for tonight?" Eijun asked, knowing that his roommate would say yes. "It's fine by me, but you'll need Kuramochi's permission as well."

That would be hard, since Kuramochi and Kazuya did have a bipolar relationship. "Is Kuramochi-senpai even back yet?" Haruichi nodded as he helped Furuya carry the catcher inside the room, placing him down on Eijun's bed.

"Kuramochi-senpai decided to go batting with Aniki."

Just his luck. "Eijun-kun, we should try to bring Miyuki-senpai's fever down." Eijun was too worn out to move from his spot on the bed next to the catcher. "I gave him a fever reducer on the train, but I guess it wore off." Haruichi turned towards Furuya, ready to order him around. "Satoru-kun, will you go get a cold washcloth and ask Takashima-san for a fever reducer?"

If there was one thing everyone knew, it was that Furuya couldn't say no to Haruichi. As Furuya left to go gather the required items, Haruichi decided to use this time to make small talk with Eijun.

"How was your weekend with Miyuki-senpai, Eijun-kun?" Haruichi asked, sitting down next to the pitcher on the bed. "It was pretty fun. How was yours with Furuya?" Haruichi smiled as he thought back to his weekend. "It was amazing."

They sat there completely silent, unsure of what to say to say to break the silence. "So...Eijun-kun, why did you ask me about my definition of love?" Eijun stayed silent, worrying his friend a bit.

"Eijun-kun, did you...?" Eijun gripped the blankets on his bed, tightly, looking over from the sleeping catcher to Haruichi sitting next to him. "I'm not sure, really. I don't even know what love is..."

Furuya couldn't have arrived at a better time with everything Haruichi had requested. "Takashima-san says to call her if his fever won't go down, or if it comes back a day or two after going away."

Haruichi took the cool wash-cloth and handed it to Eijun. "Place this on his forehead, Eijun-kun." Haruichi explained, taking the bottle of pills out of Furuya's hand to read over the directions. Eijun carefully pushed the catchers bangs out of his face before gently placing the cool washcloth on his forehead.

"Eijun-kun, we'll be right back. We're going to see if the cafeteria will prepare something that won't upset Miyuki-senpai's stomach since he can't take this medication without a meal." Haruichi said as he got off the bed and joined Furuya in the doorway.

"Will you be alright here with Miyuki-senpai?" Eijun nodded, picking up a Shoujo manga from one of his manga stacks - that had long since toppled over - beside his bunk.

* * *

><p>As Eijun read the fifth book of the manga series, he heard a small cough from beside him. "Ah, Miyuki! Are you alright? Do you want water?" Kazuya sat up, blinking a bit in his delirious state, and turned to look at the pitcher a bit confused.<p>

"Eijun, is that you?" Kazuya asked in a raspy voice as he rubbed his eyes a bit. "Yeah, it's just me. Did you want water or something?"

Kazuya nodded; his throat was burning and the thought of having water to soothe his dry, aching throat sounded pleasant. Eijun sat his manga aside and grabbed the bottle of water that was sitting on the floor beside his bunk, uncapped it, and handed it over to the catcher who chugged half of the bottle down.

"Thanks. My throat feels a bit better now." Eijun sat the bottle back down beside his bunk. "Do you need anything? Do you need to go to bathroom?" Eijun asked, glancing at the catcher leaning on his shoulder. "I'm fine. But can you read your manga out loud?" Kazuya asked, smiling at the pitcher, tiredly.

"I'll start over at the beginning then." Eijun replied, marking his spot and flipping back to the first page. As he read, he felt the catchers warm breath tickle his neck. Kazuya had fallen asleep again. Eijun sighed and gently pushed the catcher off of him.

Haruichi and Furuya finally showed up, a small bowl of warm soup in Furuya's hands indicated that they had brought food.

"Sorry for the wait, Eijun-kun! There was a long line in the cafeteria and then when we finally got to the front, they were all out of soup...we had to walk all the way into town just to get some in a can, then come back here to find a bowl to heat it up in, and then wait for it to cool off." Haruichi explained, worn down by the adventure he and Furuya had been on just to get soup.

"Urgh, Miyuki already fell asleep." He mumbled, debating of whether he should wake the catcher up or let him sleep. "That's fine, we'll just leave this here. Do you want us to tell Kuramochi-senpai you're staying here?" Eijun shook his head. "Nah, that's okay, Masuko-san will probably drop in a word."

Haruichi and Furuya left him alone with the catcher once again. This was going to be a long night.

* * *

><p>Kazuya had woken up and climbed out of Eijun's bunk, startling the pitcher. "Miyuki, what are you doing!?" The catcher raised a brow at the pitcher's outburst. "Going to the bathroom, why do you ask?" Eijun wanted to protest, but decided to keep his mouth shut.<p>

"Fine, but don't take too long. I don't need coach getting on my ass for letting you pass out." Kazuya chuckled and walked towards the door. "I'll be back soon. Don't miss me too much while I'm gone~"

After Kazuya had left the room, Eijun sighed and picked up where he'd last left off in his manga. He didn't understand the warm, fuzzy feeling that bubbled up deep inside of his chest when he was with Kazuya of all people, but he wanted to know more about it.

It had been about five minutes and Eijun was growing worried; Kazuya had yet to come back. Eijun got up from the floor and was about to go out and search for the catcher, when the door to his room flung open.

"Sawamura, why the fuck did you get this bastard sick!?" Kuramochi barked, clearly pissed off by something Kazuya had done. "Hey, it's not his fault. I should have let go of the pole when I had the chance." Kuramochi scowled at Kazuya, obviously not liking that the catcher was staying in his room.

Eijun could only hope that Seido's first string wouldn't be down a catcher by morning.

* * *

><p>Kazuya was very demanding when he was sick; often ordering Eijun to do things for him. "I'm tired of being your slave, Miyuki!" Eijun just wanted the catcher to hurry up and get better so he could be free from being ordered around. "Hahaha, I'll make you a deal, Eijun; when you get sick, I'll let you order me around, sound fair?" Eijun could only grumble in response.<p>

Kazuya was in good spirits and hadn't had a fever in three days, but Kataoka had wanted him to take the rest of the week off, just to be safe and not have the catcher wind up overworking himself. "I'll be back at practice on Sunday, silly." Kazuya assured him, flashing him his all time killer grin. "You better be, I hate pitching to the net." Kazuya snickered into his hand he thought of Eijun pitching terribly into the net, grumbling all sorts of incoherent things.

"So Eijun, what do you think the freshmen next year will be like?" Eijun had hardly ever thought of what his second year at Seido would be like.

"Um...I dunno." Kazuya could hardly contain his laughter as he saw the pitcher thinking hard about the question. "Maybe we'll have another first year trio on the first string." Eijun stayed silent, he just couldn't imagine what the first string baseball team would be like next year with all new players.

"Yeah...maybe." Eijun, as much as anyone else, didn't want the third years to graduate and leave behind their baseball days at Seido forever. But, the one thing that hurt him the most, when he thought about it was Kazuya leaving him after his third year was done, he couldn't help but feel extremely melancholy.

"Why the long face, Eijun?" Kazuya asked, pinching the pitchers cheek a bit. "Nothing...i'm just thinking." Kazuya's eyes widened in shock at what had just come out of Eijun's mouth. Did he hear that right? Was his fever creeping back up on him once again?

"You? Thinking? Eijun, are you sure you're not getting sick!?" Eijun scowled at the catcher. "Why is it so much of a shock to you that I can think on my own, huh!? I'm not getting sick, I'm just thinking about next year."

Eijun flopped back on the bed and stared up at the bottom of the top bunk. "Well, whatever happens in the future, let's make sure to give it our best. I like being your catcher and I don't want that to change anytime soon, okay?"

Eijun nodded with a small smile on his face. "Yeah, that's fine by me." Kazuya grinned, ruffling the pitchers hair a bit.

"It's a promise then~"

Little did they know that their promise wouldn't be kept.

* * *

><p><strong>And that sums up chapter Five~<br>**

**Holy shit, this chapter took a lot out of me! DX Like Jesus. U_U'**

**Next chapter is gonna have major MiyuSawa action in it. (The romance begins, haha.)**

**Regarding the ending of this chapter, ohhhh~ This little promise that will be broken has a major role in later chapters of the story. ^_~**


	6. Chapter 6: Feelings

**Hey, hey, hey, heeeey~ Thank you all soooooo freaking much for your reviews, faves, and follows. :') They mean the absolute world to me. :3**

**_I have school starting back up soon, so chapters will take longer to put out. :( But I will update as much as I can. :)_**

**Remember to R&R~**

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><p><strong><span>Chapter Six: Feelings<span>**

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><p>Eijun could tell there was something up with the catcher. Kazuya always seemed to have his eyes on him, and it was really starting to annoy him.<p>

Eijun could swear that Kazuya had been staring at him, hardly blinking, for a good ten minutes as he practiced with Chris. "Quit staring at me, Miyuki! you're making me paranoid!" Kazuya snickered as he resorted his attention back towards catching Furuya's pitches.

"Hey Eijun, when Chris-senpai graduates, I'll be your catcher~" Kazuya stated, a smile on his face as he caught Furuya's forkball with ease. "I'd rather you not." Eijun retorted as he tried to concentrate on his own pitching.

"Miyuki-senpai, how are you going to catch for three, or more, pitchers if you only have _one_ glove?" Furuya stated the obvious question that even Eijun himself wondered. "Hmm...take turns?" Eijun and Furuya exchanged looks of outrage towards the catcher.

"Miyuki, there may be a catcher next year that could have both Sawamura and Furuya's full attention, you know that right?" Eijun looked over at Chris, a bit shocked that he had spoken up.

"Not gonna happen, senpai~ These two practically fight tooth and nail over me just to be their catcher for practice." Eijun felt his embarrassment grow more and more as Kazuya informed Chris of Eijun's childish behavior like how a teacher would to a parent. "Shut up, you damn four eyed catcher!"

Eijun wanted to spend as much time practicing with Chris as he possibly could before the third years retired, but Kazuya was making it rather difficult. Eijun hadn't been pitching very well, due to the catchers random snarky remarks, and ended up having Chris call it a day.

"Sawamura, I think it's better that you take a break from pitching." Chris said as he pulled off his helmet. Eijun pouted a bit at being told he couldn't pitch anymore. "Why! I was pitching so well!" Chris could only sigh and shake his head. "Your control was far worse today than it ever has been..." As Chris lectured him about what he had done wrong, Eijun could only pout as he saw the other catcher laughing at him.

"Chris-senpai, what are you gonna do after high school?" Eijun asked as he followed the older catcher out of the bullpen, not wanting to stick around near Kazuya any longer. "Work on getting my shoulder back into shape and then head to America to play baseball."

Eijun could only listen silently as he thought of the short amount of time that he'd spent with Chris. "I'll miss you, Chris-senpai." Eijun murmured as he tried hardest to fight back tears.

"I haven't gone anywhere yet, Sawamura. Just because we third years are graduating doesn't mean that we're going to give up on baseball forever. It's dimply the start of a new beginning for all of us." Chris explained as he patted the pitchers shoulder gently.

"Besides, you'll still have Miyuki here as your catcher." Eijun's mouth formed into a frown. As much as he liked Kazuya, he and Chris were different people; Kazuya was rather playful and rather touchy-feely with him, while Chris, no the other hand, was more serious and hardly touched him unless it was to correct his pitching stance. "But I want you! Don't get me wrong, Miyuki is a great catcher, but he's just not you." Eijun exclaimed, hoping that Chris would understand how he felt.

"Sawamura, Miyuki has long since surpassed me as a catcher." As the two walked back the dorms, Eijun could only stay silent.

"Sawamura, keep a close eye out for Miyuki." Was all he got from Chris as they departed ways. "Urgh, why did he tell me to keep a close eye out for Miyuki? It's not like he'll do anything reckless." Eijun mumbled to himself as he unlocked the door to his dorm.

* * *

><p>Eijun had just about had it with that stupid, warm, fuzzy feeling that bubbled up inside of his chest whenever he was anywhere near Kazuya. The catcher had merely brushed past him to retrieve a stray ball and yet Eijun felt like his heart would literally rip right out of his chest with how fast it was beating.<p>

Eijun wanted to know what the feeling was, so he figured it would be best to ask his senpais about it.

Eijun took in a deep breath before he knocked on the door to Jun's room. The voices muffled inside weren't hard to figure out; Tetsu and Jun were probably playing shogi together. The footsteps neared the door and the sound of the doorknob turning was heard. "Tetsu, guess who's here? It's the southpaw brat, Sawamura." Jun exclaimed which caught Tetsuya's full attention. "Let him in, Jun." Tetsuya ordered as he saw how the center fielder tried to intimidate the first year pitcher.

Jun scowled, but stepped aside so that the pitcher could enter the room. "Um...Isashiki-senpai, Yuki-senpai, I have a question to ask you two..." Eijun gulped a little and hoped that his words wouldn't fail him. "Sit down, Sawamura. We will listen to you." Tetsuya shot Jun a warning glance before he focused his full attention back towards the pitcher.

Eijun hesitantly sat down next to Tetsuya and felt his stomach do flip flops. "Tell us what's wrong, Sawamura." Tetsuya remarked as he observed how nervous the pitcher looked in their presence.

"When you fell in love with Isashiki-senpai, what did it feel like?" Tetsuya's eyes widened in surprise; he hadn't expected Eijun to ask them for _love_ advice.

"I think that I will let Jun handle this question; I'm not so very good at this." Jun sat down on the opposite side of Eijun and cleared his throat. "You better not repeat this to anyone else, brat. When I fell in love with this airhead over here, I couldn't stay mad at his stupid sayings or mistakes and generally found myself seeing him..._differently_."

Eijun listened to every word seriously; he could relate on a personal level to everything he was being told. "Eventually, the knot in my stomach grew bigger and one day, we wound up-" Tetsuya cut Jun off to keep from ruining the pitchers innocence; he didn't want Jun to explain things to the pitcher and have him try to test them out. God knows what the southpaw and his curiosity could lead him too.

"Why did you ask about falling in love, Sawamura?" Tetsuya asked as he kept his hand over Jun's mouth. "I-I...I think that I might have fallen in love with Miyuki..."

Jun's eyes widened as he tried to pry Tetsuya's hand from off of his mouth. "I wish you two the best of luck then."

Eijun got up and thanked the two for their time before he headed out to give the two time alone to discuss what had just happened.

* * *

><p>"You're one strange brat, Sawamura." Kuramochi remarked, raising a brow at the pitcher begging him for help.<p>

"Kuramochi-senpai, please help me!"

Kuramochi shot a glare at a snickering Ryousuke, who sat beside him on the floor, and sighed. There was no way in hell Ryousuke would let him live this down if he didn't help Eijun out. "Alright. The thing I think of most, when it comes to love, is giving someone the power to destroy you, and just simply trusting them not to do so."

Eijun made a mental note of that. "Really!?" As Eijun thought about the meaning of it, his mind flashed with images of Kazuya; how they first met, discovering the catcher's imperfections, and the awful scars... "So, why do you even like Kazuya anyways? I thought you said that he was a just a selfish, four-eyed asshole." Kuramochi asked as he picked up the controller to un-pause his video game.

"I...don't know, really. He's just really special to me." Eijun mumbled with a blush. Kuramochi snickered to himself as he started his game up. "Seems to me like you'd be willing to commit a crime just to be with him."

"So...Kuramochi-senpai-" Kuramochi already knew what the pitcher would ask, so he cut him off with,"I told Kazuya I wouldn't ruin your innocence, so I won't tell you anymore about my love life with Ryou-san other then it happened during my first year of high school."

Even though Eijun was curious, Kuramochi knew Kazuya would kill him if he told Eijun more than what he needed to know at the moment.

* * *

><p>Eijun stood outside the door to Chris' room arguing with Kanemaru to let him in. "C'mon, what have I ever done to you!?" Eijun cried, pounding his fists on the door. "For <strong>fucks<strong> sake; Chris-senpai **_isn't here!_**" Kanemaru's muffled voice retorted from behind the door, making Eijun even more frustrated."Then _where_ is he!?" As Eijun fought with Kanemaru through the door, he hadn't noticed that Haruichi and Furuya were watching him from in front of Haruichi's dorm.

"What do you think Eijun-kun is arguing about with Kanemaru-kun, Satoru-kun?" Haruichi asked as he stared at his best friend, a bit worried that Eijun had lost his mind.

"It must be something important." The two winced as the door flew to Kanemaru's dorm opened and hit Eijun in the face.

"_Now_ do you believe me!?" Kanemaru asked, annoyed by the pitchers presence. With a pout, Eijun walked off, mumbling about how unfair Kanemaru was to him.

"Eijun-kun...what are you doing?" Haruichi asked as the pitcher walked over to them. "Hmmm...I'm trying to figure out what love is, but everyone just has a different definition of it." Haruichi took Eijun's hands into his own and smiled at the pitcher warmly. "Eijun-kun, did you fall in love with Miyuki-senpai?" Eijun couldn't explain what he felt for the catcher in words, but his heart could.

"Like I said, I'm not sure if it's _love_ or not, but...I want to be with Miyuki as more than just _friends_. I wanna be there for him when no one else can..."

Furuya and Haruichi glanced at each other and smiled. "Go talk with Miyuki-senpai about it. I'm sure he feels the same way, Eijun-kun."

Furuya wrapped an arm around Haruichi's shoulders and smiled at Eijun for once. "Don't rush into things if you're not ready yet. Miyuki-senpai will understand if your uncomfortable with doing something."

Eijun felt a smile creep up onto is face and pulled his best friends closer to him. As he nearly smothered his best friends with a bear hug, he thanked them, endlessly. "You guys are the best."

After Eijun let them go, Haruichi and Furuya exchanged mixed glances; while they were happy that Eijun had finally come to terms with his feelings, they still couldn't help but feel worried that something bad would happen.

"Satoru-kun...I'm worried about Eijun-kun." Furuya pulled Haruichi closer towards him and looked off in the direction where they'd last seen the pitcher.

"I just hope he knows what he's getting himself in to."

* * *

><p>Eijun took in a deep breath before he walked into the bullpen where Kazuya was practicing with Kawakami. "Ah, hey Eijun, I'll be done here in a minute~" As Kazuya finished up catching for Kawakami, they went over the usual stuff about what he'd done well and what he needed to improve on before they departed ways.<p>

"So...what brings _you_ out _here_?" Kazuya asked as he took off his helmet. Eijun felt his cheeks heat up as he tried to avoid saying anything embarrassing. "No reason." Kazuya smirked as he pulled off the remainder of his gear.

"Ohhh, is there something that you want to tell me, Eijun~" Kauzya knew he'd hit the nail on the head as to why Eijun was acting so strange around him.

"There's nobody here but us, so you can tell me anything." Kazuya insisted as he stared into Eijun's golden eyes for an answer.

Eijun fiddled with the hem of his shirt and tried to avoid the catchers gaze as his cheeks turned bright red. There was no going back once he did this. "I-I...I think that I might be in love with you...Miyuki."

Kauzya stood there with Eijun in shock, his mind swarmed with thoughts about how he should handle the situation without making Eijun more uncomfortable than he already was.

"I love you too, Eijun. I've liked you since the day we first met and gradually allowed myself to fall in love with you over time." Kazuya smiled at the pitcher and pulled him closer. "So, do you want to be _more_ than just friends with me?" As he awaited Eijun's response, he tried to block out thoughts of what his father would do to him once he found out about Eijun.

"Yes." Eijun replied after what had felt like an eternity. It was a simple, sweet reply, but it was still better than a no. "Great~" Kazuya leaned in towards Eijun's face towards his lips, though Eijun held up his hands and gently blocked the catchers lips from touching his own.

"I-I'm not...ready for kissing just yet." Kazuya chuckled lightly as he carefully pulled Eijun's hands off of his mouth. "Can I kiss you elsewhere?" Kazuya wouldn't rush things if Eijun wasn't comfortable. If that meant putting off kissing until later, then so be it.

"I...haven't had my first kiss yet, so..." Eijun trailed off, hoping Kazuya would understand. It wasn't like he didn't want to _kiss_ the catcher, he just didn't feel the urge to kiss him. "It's fine~ I can wait. Now, come closer." Eijun moved a bit closer to the catcher and felt Kazuya's lips brush against his forehead.

"How's that?" Eijun touched the spot where he'd been kissed and looked up at the catcher shyly. "It was nice, I guess."

Kazuya looked up into the sky and noted how dark it had become. "Come on, let's get back or we'll be the last ones eating." Kazuya held out his hand for the pitcher to take and smiled as Eijun shyly took hold of it.

Kazuya didn't intertwine their fingers as they walked back, knowing it'd make Eijun uncomfortable and probably cause him to squirm and let go, but he was happy with taking things slow, since there was no need to rush things.

* * *

><p>As the two walked into the cafeteria, almost everyone had gotten their food and were either too busy eating, engaging in conversation, or just didn't care, as the pair walked in, hand-in-hand. "Are you okay, Eijun?" Eijun was a bit shocked that they hadn't gotten any strange looks from the others. It wasn't like they were the only same-sex couple; he just hadn't expected anyone to just blatantly ignore it when it was right in front of their faces.<p>

"Don't worry so much, Eijun. Nobody cares whether or not you're in a relationship with another guy." Kazuya assured him as they walked to get their food. Grabbing their trays, the two got their food and searched for a place to sit among the crowd.

"Kazuya, Sawamura, over here!" Kuramochi's boisterous voice called out as he waved at the two. "C'mon, Eijun~" Kazuya and Eijun carefully weaved their way through the crowd of students and over towards Kuramochi's table.

"So, give me the details." Kuramochi smirked as he looked over at Kazuya. "Bullpen." Kazuya answered simply, causing the shortstop to grin. "Anything else?" Kazuya sat down his bowl of rice and shook his head. "Nope. Just confessions, a simple forehead kiss, and we held hands on the way back."

Kuramochi grew bored with the lack of juicy details and went back to his meal.

* * *

><p>Eijun yawned a bit as he struggled to stay awake to finish up the rest his math homework. "Tired already?" Eijun tried to deny it, but a yawn cut him off. "I have to finish this tonight or my math teacher will yell at me." Kazuya sighed and got up from his bed, looking over the little amount of work Eijun had done. It was no use keeping him up any later; Eijun was tired and needed to rest.<p>

"I'll talk to him tomorrow and see if we can get this done during our lunch break." Kazuya pulled the chair the pitcher occupied out from under the desk a bit and lead Eijun over towards his bed.

"Get some sleep now, Eijun." Kazuya covered the pitcher up and kissed his forehead, making the pitcher laugh a bit. "What's so funny, Eijun?" He asked as a smile formed upon his face as he saw Eijun happy.

"I'm just happy that you're really considerate towards me." Kazuya chuckled and pinched Eijun's nose a bit. "Why wouldn't I be? I want you to be comfortable in our relationship, so I won't force you to do something you don't want too." Kazuya got up from the pitchers bed and walked over towards his own, saying a goodnight and turning off the light before he fell asleep.

Eijun snuggled deeper under his covers as he thought back to today's events. _'Part of me feels lucky that I have an amazing boyfriend, but the other feels like I don't deserve to have him.'_

* * *

><p>Kazuya had miraculously managed to convince Eijun's math teacher to extend the time Eijun had to complete his homework. As the two sat in Eijun's classroom, Kazuya explained step by step how to work out each problem until Eijun felt confident enough to work them out on his own.<p>

"Are they correct?" As Kazuya checked over Eijun's work, he gave the pitcher a thumbs up. "It's all correct." Eijun beamed with joy as he thanked Kazuya for his help.

"Thank you so much, you're the best, Miyuki." A few people in Eijun's class murmured about how someone like Kazuya could have ended up with someone like Eijun, who hardly ever put any effort into his schoolwork.

Eijun knew he didn't deserve to have Kazuya as a boyfriend; he was smart, handsome, thoughtful, and well known for his baseball skills. Eijun knew that he was just a country bumpkin who didn't fit in with the other students.

"Miyuki...I'm sorry for making you do this. I'll try harder next time." Eijun's cheery mood had been ruined by the gossip, making it difficult for him to keep positive.

"Don't be sorry, Eijun. I love spending time with you no matter what we do." Kazuya stated as he wiped away the tears that had started to form in Eijun's eyes. Eijun crying always hurt him inside; it was never a pleasant sight to behold.

"You're perfect just the way you are, Eijun. You make me smile more and brighten up my day with little sayings that may not be funny to other people, but I still find them to be hilarious." Kazuya confided, patting the pitchers head, gently. Before he'd met Eijun, he'd been stuck in a depression that he had trouble breaking out of, resorting to cutting as a final option. When Eijun appeared out of the blue suddenly, it was as if he'd brought along the light with him.

Kazuya had thought of something he knew was crazy, but couldn't help but say it anyways. "If you can hit at least one pitch during one of our games, I'll prove to you just how much you cross my mind on a daily basis."

Eijun let his head collide with the desk out of pure agony. He sucked at batting; he could bunt, but he couldn't bat worth life. "You know that I can't bat worth life." Eijun mumbled, causing Kazuya to chuckle.

No matter how hot it was, Kazuya was still uncomfortable wearing short sleeves during school. "Don't you get sweaty wearing that?" Eijun slowly lifted the sleeve to Kazuya's uniform up to make sure that he hadn't reopened his scars. To his relief, the scars had healed up nicely and hadn't been messed with for awhile.

Kazuya had fallen silent; Eijun thought he'd said something wrong before Kazuya forced a smile upon his face. "It's sweet to know that you care Eijun, but I'm alright."

He hated to lie to Eijun, but he didn't want to ruin their relationship by having Eijun constantly worrying over him.

* * *

><p>School had ended fifteen minutes ago and Kazuya still saw no signs of Eijun. <em>'Where is he?'<em> Kazuya tried to stay calm as he thoroughly searched through all of the first years in the heap of students exiting their classrooms for any sight of Eijun, but there were no signs of him anywhere.

As Kazuya walked out of the school to get ready for practice, he wondered to himself where exactly Eijun could have vanished too in such a short period of time. Eijun was forgetful, yes, but he _always_ waited for Kazuya after their last classes ended.

After Kazuya had changed into his uniform, he walked out of the locker room to get his gear on and noticed a certain brunet holding a baseball bat in his hands; a loud string of curse words coming from his mouth.

Eijun was trying to bat as best he could, but he always kept missing the ball. Kazuya chuckled at the sight and decided to be of use to the pitcher. "Here, bend your knees a little so you don't feel stiff."

Kazuya helped correct Eijun's pose and wondered just how little Eijun knew about batting. "Say Eijun," the pitcher looked at him out of the corner of his eye as he waited Kazuya's question. "How long have you been playing baseball without proper instructions?"

Eijun shrugged, unsure of how long it had been since he had a proper baseball coach. "Err, I think since I was around nine or ten years old." No wonder Eijun had trouble batting; he hadn't been taught the correct way at all.

"I'm surprised people say you suck at batting when you've never received proper instructions on how to actually bat." Kazuya stood behind Eijun and carefully corrected the pitchers stance into the proper way.

"Alright, now slowly swing the bat." Eijun was a bit of a slow learner, so Kazuya often had to correct him or re-show him the correct way to bat. He didn't mind it though, he actually felt useful for once in his life.

"Okay, I'll toss the ball to you and lets see if you can hit it." Kazuya sat down on the crate and picked up one of the stray baseballs that had rolled over and tossed it to Eijun. Even though Eijun swung at the right time, he'd still missed the ball. Eijun felt discouraged that he hadn't hit it even though Kazuya showed him the correct stance and the correct way to hold the bat.

"Don't get discouraged, Eijun. You're doing fine, just step in a little bit further next time." No matter how many times he'd swung, he'd missed the ball every single time. Eijun was frustrated with himself for not being able to hit such easy tosses that everyone else seemed to be hitting with ease.

Kazuya wrapped an arm around the pitchers shoulders and smiled at him. "Hey, don't beat yourself up over this. We'll try it again tomorrow."

No matter what Kazuya said to him, Eijun felt even more discouraged over his lack of batting skills.

* * *

><p>"Eijun-kun, what's wrong?" Haruichi asked as he noticed the pitchers sullen look. "I can't bat worth life and stupid Miyuki is all,"Don't get discouraged over it" how can I not when I can't even hit the damn ball!? I'm such a let down."<p>

Haruichi knew Eijun had poor batting skills from lack of proper instruction, so he was determined to help Eijun out as best as he could. "I'll help you out, Eijun-kun."

As they finished up dinner, Haruichi pulled Eijun around campus to find a good batting area. The only good spot he could find was occupied by four others; Kuramochi, Ryousuke, Tetsuya, and Jun, to be precise. "Haruichi, what brings you here?" Ryousuke remarked as a smirk formed on his face as he noticed Eijun standing next to his brother.

Haruichi was about to reply when Kuramochi's laugh cut him off,"Kyehaha, maybe Furuya finally took the warning to heart, Ryou-san." As the two smirked at each other, Haruichi felt his face heat up, mortified that his brother and Kuramochi were referring to his relationship with Furuya.

"Aniki! We weren't even doing anything!" Ryousuke shook his head disappointingly. "I'm truly saddened by the fact that you chose _him_ of all people, Haruichi. Even _Sawamura_ - when he was still single, that is - would have been better than _Furuya_. But, then again, you've always had a weird taste in men." Ryousuke said as he swung his bat, making a swoosh sound.

"_Aniki_..." Haruichi could only hope Eijun wouldn't say anything that would give his brother any ideas.

"Sawamura, if you weren't dating Miyuki, between Kuramochi and Furuya, who would you pick as the better boyfriend?" Jun butted into their conversation, making Eijun panic a bit inwardly.

"Um...well...I don't know." Eijun mumbled, unsure of how he should answer the question without offending either one of the Kominato brothers with his answer. Truthfully, he couldn't pick; he had devoted himself to keeping his eyes only for Kazuya, so dating anyone else was out of the question.

"Oho~ Jun, since you're so intrigued in our conversation, between Tetsu and baseball, which do you love more?" Ryousuke smirked mischievously, knowing full well Jun wouldn't be able to answer the question.

"Kuramochi, between Ryousuke and Wakana-chan, who's your favorite?" Tetsuya asked as he set his bat aside to stare at Jun, awaiting an answer that would decide whether he would stay the night with Jun or go home to clear his head.

"Of course it's me, right Youichi?" Ryousuke opened his fiery pink eyes fully to stare into Kuramochi's, ready to commit treason if Kuramochi didn't answer yes.

Eijun stood off to the side with Haruichi, watching the two couples bicker with one another until Tetsuya picked up his bat and walked away from his fuming boyfriend, who was still arguing with Kuramochi and Ryousuke over how unfair they were being.

"Jun, I'll be staying at my place tonight." Tetsuya said as he walked off, leaving Jun to fumble with his words.

Eijun and Haruichi stood there in shock, unsure of if they should stay and watch or leave them to fight in peace.

"Eijun, seriously...stop running off without telling me." Kazuya exclaimed, a fake pout on his face as he walked over towards the pitcher. "Geez, what's with those three? They're acting like teenage girls on their periods." Kazuya said with a slight shake of his head at how childish they were being, wrapping his arms around Eijun's waist, resting his chin on the pitcher's shoulder.

"Oh, you do know that Furuya's looking everywhere on campus for you, Kominato?" Kazuya's warm, minty breath tickled Eijun's neck, which made him laugh a bit. "That tickles." Kazuya smirked and raised Eijun's shirt up a bit, exposing his stomach.

"What are you-" Eijun couldn't finish his sentence when he felt the catcher start to tickle his stomach, causing him to laugh until his sides started to hurt.

"Eijun-kun, do you want to try this again tomorrow?" Haruichi suggested as he grabbed his wooden bat. "Sure thing, Harucchi."

Even though Eijun had laughed rather loudly, the three never stopped their bickering. They just turned and told him to shut up before picking up where they had last left off in their argument.

* * *

><p>"I forgot that Yuki-senpai lived off campus." Eijun said as he crashed down upon his bed, exhausted by all the training he'd done.<p>

"He stays with Jun in his dorm most of the time, but when they argue, he tends to go home. Jun always goes to apologize first thing in morning, though." Kazuya explained as he collapsed onto his own bed.

Eijun shyly let his eyes wander over towards the catchers well toned body and could hardly take his eyes off of Kazuya. Even with the self inflicted scars that loitered his writs and arms, Eijun still believed that a shirtless Kazuya was truly a magnificent sight to behold.

"Like what you see, huh?" Eijun grabbed a hold his pillow and held it close to his chest as he nodded at the catcher. "Maybe." Kazuya wanted nothing more than to go join Eijun in his bed, but it was far too hot in the dorm room and he didn't feel like moving from his position.

"I can't wait for winter." Eijun blinked, confusedly. "Why?" The catcher grinned,"Well, it's my favorite season and also, because I can cuddle up with you in bed without us getting too hot."

Eijun rolled over onto his other side to face the walk and sighed. _'I really don't deserve to have such a great boyfriend like Miyuki.'_ He wanted to improve his pitching and batting just to show Kazuya that he was indeed trying to become the ace with his help.

"Ya know, you're gonna be a great senpai to the freshmen." Kazuya commented, solely drifting off to sleep. "How so?" Eijun asked as he turned to face the catcher.

"You make people smile even when their life is just complete shit."

* * *

><p><strong>And that concludes chapter 6~ ^~^<br>**

**_Will Eijun be able to hit a pitch? :o Find out in the next chapter~ ;)_**

**Remember to R&R~**


	7. Chapter 7: Achievement

**FROM HERE ON OUT, THIS STORY WILL HAVE MAJOR SPOILERS FROM BOTH THE TRANSLATED AND UNTRANSLATED CHAPTERS FROM THE MANGA; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!**

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><p><strong>Hey everyone~ I got some positive feedback on the last chapter. :) I'll try to keep the fluffiness in for just a few more chapters...that's when the major turning points start to happen in the story.<strong>

**Anywho, here is the next chapter for awhile. I'm going back to school and can't stay up late to write like I squally do. :(**

**But no worries~ I'll update this as much as I can. :) I have most of the future chapters planned out already, they're just not written down. ;3**

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><p><strong>Chapter 7: Acheivement <strong>

* * *

><p>The crowd cheered loudly in the stands for Seido to be victorious in their game.<p>

Eijun stood in the batters box, bat in hand, ready to swing at any given second. He'd gotten two strikes already; if he missed this one, he'd never get to bring Kazuya back home.

Sweat accumulated on his brow as he stood in the hot sun, gripping the bat as best he could. Eijun took a deep breath as he remembered the words Kazuya had told him prior before the game.

**_"If you can hit at least one pitch during one of our games, I'll prove to you just how much you cross my mind on a daily basis."_**

'_I really hope Miyuki is ready for the outcome. I'm not so sure I can do this under so much pressure...'_

It was the final inning and Seido only needed one more point to take the lead. When the pitcher and catcher agreed upon what pitch would be thrown, Eijun gripped the bat even harder for dear life and watched as the pitcher took up his pitching form and then released the ball from his hand.

It was a simple fastball.

As the ball moved closer and closer towards him, Eijun swung and with a loud clank, he'd a hit the ball straight into the outfield. Eijun instinctively dropped the bat he was holding prior to the hit and hastily dashed towards first base.

He'd made it to first base just before the ball hit the first baseman's glove, sending cheers throughout the stadium.

As Eijun looked towards the dugout Kazuya grinned at him; he proud of Eijun's achievement. Eijun grinned back at the catcher and waited for the next batter up to help send him to second or third base.

* * *

><p>Seido was victorious in the end by two points. Eijun had just finished up changing into his regular clothing when Kazuya pulled him into a warm embrace. "I'm so proud of you, Eijun. I have a really special reward for you~ Go to your room and check out your bed."<p>

Kazuya lightly kissed Eijun's cheek before he let go of the pitcher, watching how Eijun's face turned slightly red as he exited the locker room.

Eijun couldn't stop thinking about what Kazuya's surprise could be as he walked back to the dorm he now just shared with just Kuramochi, as Masuko had moved out. Kazuya was permitted to come and go from their dorm as he pleased, often angering Kuramochi.

Eijun unlocked the door and stepped inside the cool dorm room. He made a beeline straight for his bed where he found something thick and rectangular wrapped up in baseball themed wrapping paper.

Eijun carefully tore off the paper and his eyes widened as he stared at what the gift was; the complete set of one his favorite Shoujo manga's: Absolute Boyfriend. There was note on the box addressed to him from Kazuya, he carefully tore it off and began to read what Kazuya had written for him.

_Hello, Ei-chan~_

_If you've received this present then it means that you have accomplished that goal of hitting a pitch. This is a little present that I bought to show you just how much I love and think about you on a daily basis~ Enjoy the gift, Eijun; you deserve it._

_Love from your wonderful, talented, amazing, boyfriend, Miyuki Kazuya~_

Eijun stared at the note in his hands and felt the tears slowly drip down from the corner of his eyes, dropping onto the note and wetting the paper with big splotches.

Eijun turned his attention over towards the door where Kazuya was standing, smiling at the pitchers reaction to the gift. "I hope those are tears of joy, Eijun." Eijun was speechless at the gift that he'd received from Kazuya, nearly pinching his cheek to make sure that this wasn't a dream he was having.

"You...You bought this just for me?" Kazuya's smile widened as he walked over towards the astonished pitcher and gently wiped the tears from Eijun's eyes. "Of course. There's never a time of day where you don't cross my mind."

Eijun's tears streamed down his face, a bit of snot running out of his nose, as he hugged the catcher as tightly as he possibly could. "Thank you so much."

Kazuya hugged Eijun back and smiled to himself, relieved that Eijun loved the gift he'd received. Kazuya had been extremely paranoid about what manga series he'd picked out; Eijun was a guy, but he loved to read Shoujo manga.

* * *

><p>As Eijun piled down onto his bed to read the series from beginning to end, Kazuya started on his homework at the desk. Kazuya had always excelled in school, often being asked by his classmates to help them out. They never liked him too much, since he often refused to help them. Even if he helped them, their scores would always stay the same.<p>

Middle school was always a rough time for him, before he'd met Mei, he had been constantly bullied by the other students. They'd call him every name they could think of, often combining words together, and would often get very violent with him if he retorted.

His father never cared about his dirty appearance or the bruises and scars on his body...no, all his father ever cared about was his work and having Kazuya live up to the Miyuki name.

Whenever Kazuya had come home in tears from the extent if the bullying he'd received, it always lead up to his father scowling at him and yelling at him about how disappointed he was to have a crybaby like Kazuya as a son.

Kazuya gripped the pencil in his right hand tighter and grimaced as the painful memories slowly flooded back into his mind.

His body shook with rage as he tried to block out all of the horrific memories that replayed over and over on a never ending loop. Kazuya lost his grip on the pencil he was holding, letting it slide off the desk and down on to the floor beside it.

Kazuya tried to cease the headache he was getting by rubbing his temples, but it was useless; he would never be able to make the memories vanish.

Eijun looked up from his manga and was startled by the sight of Kazuya losing his cool. "Miyuki, are you alright?" There was no answer. Eijun got up from his bed and slowly walked over towards Kazuya.

The sight he was greeted with was painful to see; here was Seido's genuine catcher crumbling apart in front of him. Eijun was unable to get a response from Kazuya as he asked the question once more.

"Dad is gonna do a lot more than just yell and call me a "worthless son" when he finds out that I've been lying to him this whole time..."

Eijun had never been in such a predicament before in his life. He was clueless on what he should do to help. "Miyuki, come on...what's wrong, tell me!"

Eijun was unable to get any type of response from Kazuya as he struggled to make sense of what was going on with the catcher.

The door opened up and in walked a freshly showered Kuramochi. As he looked at the scene between the two, he frowned, scrunched up his brow, and walked over to see what they were up to.

"Kuramochi-senpai, please help me!" Eijun pleaded, desperate for any advice on how to deal with this issue.

"Smack him, Sawamura." Was the short response he'd received from Kuramochi. "W-What?" Eijun was unsure of it he'd heard that right or not. "You heard me, Sawamura. Just smack Kazuya back into his senses."

Eijun gulped as he raised his hand and hoped that Kazuya wouldn't hate him for this. His hand collided with Kazuya's cheek harshly, snapping the catcher out of his delirious state.

"Miyuki, get to bed." Kuramochi ordered as Kazuya finally came back to his senses. Kazuya opened his mouth to retort, but quickly shut it when he saw the harsh gaze Kuramochi was giving him and complied with his order.

Eijun was pulled out of the room by Kuramochi, who'd left the door cracked open a bit to monitor Kazuya, just in case he decided to do something stupid.

"It seems like you've just experienced first hand how Kazuya is affected when he thinks back to his middle school days." Eijun was extremely worried about Kazuya; he wanted nothing more than to go back inside and huddle up under the covers with him.

"Since you're his boyfriend, he should be the one to tell you everything. But I'll just fill you in on the little things he's told me; Kazuya was bullied and tormented by his classmates back in middle school. I'm pretty glad that he didn't give me any names, I'd personally see to it that they'd get a very painful punishment."

Eijun leaned against the wall and tried to take in everything he'd just now learned about Kazuya. The thought of someone hurting Kazuya just didn't sound right to him at all. "Kuramochi-senpai...how long does it take to help a person who's never been shown unconditional love before?"

"It all depends on whether or the person will accept that type of love, Sawamura."

* * *

><p>Eijun tossed and he turned, but he was unable to find any position he was in comfortable. Kazuya had long since fallen asleep next to him, exhausted from the days events. Eijun gently brushed Kazuya's bangs back from out of his face, causing the catcher to stir awake. "Ah, I'm sorry, Miyuki. Did I wake you up?" Eijun whispered, trying not to wake Kuramochi up.<p>

"No, you're fine." Kazuya yawned, burying his face deeper into the pitchers chest. "You smell really good; kinda like pine and mint combined."

Eijun sighed deeply, finding it hard to fall asleep. The game had worn him out since he'd pitched for four innings, but the trouble he had in falling asleep came from his unwavering worry for Kazuya. He'd never seen the catcher so broken by something that had happened in the past.

"Miyuki, do you wanna take a walk with me around campus?" Kazuya groaned softly, rolling over onto his back to stare blearily at the bottom of Kuramochi's bunk. All he wanted to do was go back to sleep, since they did have morning practice in roughly about six hours, but there was no way he could say no to Eijun or let him wander around campus all alone while it was still dark outside.

"Are you having trouble falling asleep or something, Eijun?" Eijun nodded as he sat up from the bed and rubbed his eyes from sleep. He stood up from the bed and pulled on a pair of gray sweatpants. Kazuya yawned and shifted over towards the edge of the bed and sat up, grabbing his glasses from off the huge stack of manga's Eijun had beside the bed and placed them on his face.

Kazuya slowly stood up and stretched a bit, a big yawn coming from his mouth. Kazuya pulled on his black sweatpants and a red hoodie. The air had gotten much cooler than it had been during the summer; fall was slowly approaching them.

They slipped on their shoes and stepped out into the cool air. Kazuya shivered a bit from the coolness as the cool wind blew, thankful that he had put his hoodie on. As much as he loved Eijun, he had some nerve to drag him out of the nice, warm, bed and out into the cold, beginning of fall, air.

"So...are we just gonna walk around like we're creepy stalkers, or are we going sit down somewhere and talk about what's bothering you?" Kazuya was always grouchy when he was woken up too early. Eijun may be his boyfriend, but there were no exceptions at Eijun waking him up from his peaceful slumber.

"Um...how about we walk and talk?" Eijun murmured, rubbing his arms that had goosebumps on them from being out in the cool air. Kazuya groaned loudly as he walked alongside Eijun.

"Did you have a rough time in middle school, Miyuki?" Eijun whispered so lowly that Kazuya almost didn't hear him. Kazuya processed the question in his head, debating on whether he should let Eijun know about his rough middle school days.

"Yeah, but that's all in the past now." Eijun scowled at the catchers answer. Kazuya was hiding more than what he'd let on; Kazuya's lies were starting to make Eijun feel less worthy of being with him.

"Cut the crap, Miyuki. Why are you-" before Eijun could finish his sentence, the cold wind blew a bit harder, causing Eijun to shiver from being in just a light T-shirt. Kazuya merely smirked at him, ignoring his last statement. "Are you cold, Eijun?" Eijun blushed and turned his head to turn away from the catcher, embarrassed that Kazuya had noticed him shivering against the harsh, cold, wind.

"No, I'm fine. It's just a bit chilly." Kazuya removed his hoodie and handed it to Eijun. "Here, put this on. It'll keep you warm." Eijun bit his lip as he looked from the red hoodie over towards Kazuya's face.

Eijun was about to give the hoodie back to Kazuya when the harsh wind blew again. Eijun scowled, took the hoodie from Kazuya and pulled it over his head, providing him with warmth.

Kazuya may be an absolute ass from time to time, but he was still a very considerate person when it came to Eijun.

* * *

><p>Eijun split up from Kazuya to go stand with all of the other first years at morning practice. He had hardly gotten any sleep the night before and was already starting to fall asleep on his feet. It was August third; the fight for starting positions had only since begun now that the third years had retired.<p>

All of the remaining fifty nine members - made up of first and second years - had gathered on the field awaiting the coach's announcement. Coach Kataoka stood in front of them, ready to start his big announcement. Eijun had a feeling deep within his gut that the news Coach Kataoka was about to deliver would sink into their minds forever.

Coach Kataoka stared at the players and cleared his throat; the announcement was now beginning. "I know that you all have learned much and grew here at Seido, but there is no generation that can match the growth of the retired third years. Even during practice, every single one of them kept their spirits high and their eyes on the ball; that is how they became so strong."

The silence amongst the crowd was inhumane, it was as if someone had muted them completely. Not a single breath could be heard from any of them as they listened to coach Kataoka respectfully.

"It is my fault as the coach for not letting them gather the rewards. None of you should ever forget the regrets of that loss."

The crowd managed to find their voices to shout out a,"Yes, sir!" that echoed throughout the entire field.

"Now, let's have a few words from your new captain." Eijun held his breath as he watched Kazuya come out from the crowd of second years and run to the front to face them all. Their eyes locked with one another's for just a moment before Kazuya broke their gaze to focus on everyone else.

"Um...well...to be completely honest...I'm still shocked, but...anyways, a word..." Kazuya had become a completely different person as he begun to have more confidence in addressing the crowd.

"I know for a fact that I probably won't ever forget the outcome of that final game for as long as I live. I know that we are inexperienced and that each and every one of our opponents are strong. For the first time, I feel that baseball truly is frightening when you don't know what will happen next or what small error could ruin our chances of winning and going to Koshien."

Eijun had never heard Kazuya speak in such a way before, it was almost frightening that he could be this way.

"While I do feel sorry the third years who have now retired, we still have another year left to get our revenge for that loss. If we're going to be doing it, I want the results to matter the most..."

Kazuya paused for a moment, looking at each of the members carefully. "I want us to be ravenous for victory until the very end, understood?"

Everyone fell silent as they proceeded what had just been told to them by their newly appointed captain. Kazuya's next words were a big shocker for them, however. "Now, I intend to say everything I want to, so please prepare yourselves."

* * *

><p>After practice ended, Kazuya took his usual spot on the bed next to Eijun, who was busy reading his Shoujo manga. "So, how'd I do?" Kazuya asked with a wide smirk, eyeing the pitcher for his answer. "It wasn't bad, but you could have been much louder."<p>

Kazuya lightly bonked Eijun's head,"Oh, shut it, you." Kazuya picked up one if the Shoujo manga's and stared at it curiously.

"Ya know, when I bought the series set for you, the cashier asked me if it was for my girlfriend, since I don't appear to be the type to read Shoujo manga, and you know what happened?" Eijun student answer, his eyes remained focused on the manga he was trying to read.

"I smiled and said that they were for my boyfriend." Eijun could feel his cheeks get warm from Kazuya's statement; Kazuya was just something else entirely.

"Are these any good?" Eijun gaped at him, almost offended by the question he'd just been asked. "They're actually pretty amazing, believe it or not." Kazuya flipped through the pages and turned it over to read the backside of it.

"Damn, these are so cliché, Eijun. No wonder you read them."

* * *

><p>Practice went by smoothly the next few weeks; Kazuya pushing them to the limit as the new captain.<p>

"Alright, it's time for a lunch break!"

Everyone sighed with relief as Kazuya decided that it was time for lunch, they'd been working until it was pitch dark outside, resting only for a few short minutes.

Kazuya turned to look at a sweaty Eijun, smirking as he wrapped an arm around the pitchers shoulders. "How's practice treating you, Eijun?" Eijun scowled and attempted to pull Kazuya's arm off his shoulders. Even at practice, Kazuya was so damn affectionate towards him, often leading to their teammates teasing them about it.

"It's fine, Miyuki. Now get your damn arm off of me." Kazuya pouted a bit, but retreated his arm from off the moody pitchers shoulders. "You're so moody today, Eijun. But, I still love you~" Kazuya gave Eijun a chaste kiss on the cheek before waving goodbye to go join Kuramochi and Maezono.

Eijun rolled his eyes as he walked over to where Haruichi and Furuya were standing in the shade. Haruichi handed Furuya a towel to wipe off the excessive sweat that dripped down his face. "C'mon, Satoru-kun. We'll get you a glass of ice water when we get inside the building."

As the three walked the short distance to the cafeteria - Furuya's complaints of "I'm melting" being ignored by Eijun - a gruff voice called out to them. "Hey, you. What time does your practice end today?" The chubby man asked them as he thoroughly examined each of the players with his keen eyes.

"Miyuki told me that it's ending around six." Eijun replied, raising a brow at the man suspiciously. Furuya and Haruichi exchanged glances with one another and shrugged, unsure of why the man had asked such a question.

"From nine in the morning? That's a pretty long time. To be honest, isn't it tough?" The man asked, surprised by Eijun's answer.

Eijun merely shrugged his shoulders, completely unbothered by the amount of practice they'd been doing the past few months. "Of course it's long. We practice long and hard because we don't want to lose; we won't say that it's too hard, too tough, or too hot out, we just deal with it." Eijun exclaimed with a huge grin spreading across his face.

As the three turned to leave, the man spoke up yet again. "It's like you're practicing just to lose...sweating and putting in effort everyday, should I say that it's great...or something else?"

As the man started to sprout out nonsense about how athletes were extreme masochists and narcissists, Eijun could feel his blood start to boil, resisting the urge to lash out at the man as Haruichi pulled him away.

* * *

><p>"Gah, what's with that old geezer anyways!? He talks so nasty." Eijun growled, he regretted not going with Kazuya when he had the chance. His mood had just took a complete turn from elated to infuriated when they talked to the man.<p>

Haruichi tried to calm him down as they walked towards the cafeteria entrance way. "Calm down, Eijun-kun. Some people are just like that."

As they opened the door, they had expected to be greeted with the sight of the baseball team members devouring their food at the tables, but instead...they were greeted with them standing around near coach Kataoka.

Murmurs from the crowd arose, catching the three freshmen's ears as they stepped inside. "A new coach...?" Eijun thought his ears had been deceiving him as he heard the words. He tapped Kanemaru on the shoulder and asked,"What's going on here?"

Kanemaru rolled his eyes as he explained the situation to the three who'd just walked in. "Huh? We're getting a new coach." Eijun's eyes widened and his mind blanked out as he tuned out the world, unable to believe that this was true.

"The whole team needs to improve during summer break. Challenge yourselves with problems you face individually until the fall championship!"

The yells of,"Yes, sir!" echoed throughout the entire room. None of them could have imagined that coach Kataoka would ever be resigning from Seido.

* * *

><p>Kazuya stared at the homework on the desk, trying to concentrate on it but always found himself thinking back to what coach Kataoka had said.<p>

"Eijun, what do you think our new coach is gonna be like?" Kazuya asked as he leaned back in the chair to get a glimpse of the pitcher. Eijun had been silent since they found out coach Kataoka would be resigning. Eijun looked up at him and back down towards the manga that he had been rereading, trying to take his thoughts off of the man he'd encountered during their lunch break and coach Kataoka resigning.

"I don't know..." was the simple response Eijun had given him, obviously not up for talking. Kazuya sighed and set aside his homework to roll the chair from the desk, over towards the side of Eijun's bunk.

"Did something happen today? Did anyone say anything out of place to you?" Kazuya's tone was low and aggressive, catching Eijun off guard.

"Um...well...today when we were leaving for our lunch break...me, Harucchi, and Furuya ran into some old geezer who basically told us that we were wasting our time practicing just to lose again...and then Boss said that he was resigning..." Eijun trailed off, hoping Kazuya would leave him be.

"You're scared that if coach Kataoka leaves then we'll be stuck with some coach who isn't as good as Kataoka." Kazuya climbed off the chair and sat down on the bed next to Eijun, pulling him closer towards him,

"Whatever happens Eijun, just know that we'll get through it together."

Eijun could only hope so.

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><p><strong>And concludes chapter 7~ ^_^<strong>

**Notes~**

**Kazuya suffers from depression and PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder.). From his father being a complete asshole towards him and from his middle school days. **


	8. Chapter 8: Just Between Us

**Hey, hey, hey everyone~ \^0^/**

**I've been writing this chapter for the longest, due to school taking up most of my time. I'm going to go back and edit the first 7 chapters due to the spelling errors and whatnot, but I have ****started work on the beginning of chapter 9~ ^_~ **

**Anywho, enjoy this long ass chapter (8,256 words) and remember to R&R~ **

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><p><strong>Chapter 8: Just Between Us<strong>

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><p>Eijun stared down at the open textbook on his desk, completely unfocused on the topic of human geography. His mind still replayed the events of morning practice in his head on repeat, causing him to be distracted from his studies.<p>

"Sawamura-kun? You do know that it's lunch time, right?" Haruno asked him gently, worry lingering in her tone as she looked at Eijun worriedly. Eijun had been quiet all class period and hadn't slept once; everyone - including the teacher - was worried that Eijun might be sick, not warning to get sick themselves though, they made sure to be extremely cautious around him.

"Yoshikawa-san?" Eijun looked up at her confusedly before he glanced up at the clock on the wall; lunch time was truly here. Eijun had hardly any appetite for food at the moment; he didn't think he'd be able to stomach it.

"Sawamura-kun, are you feeling alright?" Eijun nodded, knowing that it was a lie. He didn't want to worry Haruno, fearing that she'd tell Haruichi, Furuya, or the upperclassmen about his lack of concentration. The words he'd been told that morning had stung his heart and replayed through his mind on a constant loop.

After the last class of the day ended, Eijun didn't bother to wait for Kazuya, knowing he'd be too busy with his job as the team captain to walk back to the dorms with him. The walk back to the dorms was lonesome and silent for Eijun; he figured that if he took the long way back - away from the crowd - it would ease his mind.

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><p>The dorm was silent; Kuramochi and Kazuya hadn't come back at all, probably busy meeting with coach Kataoka or planning out new tactics for any upcoming games. Eijun hated the silence; he felt that it betrayed him by allowing the voices in his head to grow stronger.<p>

Eijun sat down on his bunk and furiously wiped at his eyes, trying his hardest to fight the tears forming in his eyes. "I'm such a wimp..." He mumbled to himself, his voice cracking as he chocked back a sob. If Kazuya were here, he'd wrap his arms around his waist and allow Eijun to let his emotions pour out and never leave his side until he was feeling up to talking.

Kazuya nowadays was far too busy with his role as team captain to find enough spare time to spend with Eijun. There was no way he'd be able to see that there was something hurting Eijun inside.

Eijun tried to compose himself, but couldn't find the strength to move from his position on the bed. Every part of his body ached and the tears flowed freely down his face like a waterfall.

**_"Miyuki-senpai doesn't deserve to be seen with such a stupid, loser, pitcher like you, Sawamura. It's just...unnatural. Miyuki-senpai probably just felt sorry for you since you're nowhere near Furuya, Tanba-san, or Kawakami-senpai's level. You're just letting yourself be fooled by your obliviousness, thinking that it's truly love when it's not. Now that he's captain, Miyuki-senpai probably doesn't even bother give a shit to care about you anymore. Grow up, Sawamura. You're just holding Miyuki-senpai back."_**

It hurt him deeply to know that he was nothing more to Kazuya other than a weight he could just simply drop whenever he was done with it and that it was himself holding Kazuya back. If he truly meant nothing to Kazuya, he'd simply just stay as far away from the catcher as possible.

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><p>"Eijun, since I'm free right now, I'll catch your pitches if you'd like." Eijun bit down on his lower lip, trying his hardest to keep himself from spilling his thoughts to Kazuya. Eijun avoided Kazuya's eyes as he slowly said,"Sorry, but I already asked Ono-senpai to catch for me. You can go ahead and catch for Furuya or Nori-senpai if you'd like..." He didn't even have to look at Kazuya's face to know that he had hurt the catcher.<p>

"Really? Too bad, because I really wanted to catch for you." The hurt lingering in Kazuya's tone was evident, but Eijun chose to ignore it. He couldn't hold Kazuya back from preforming at his best. As Eijun trudged off, he could have sworn that he'd heard Kazuya mumble something under his breath.

It had been four days and Kazuya still hadn't been able to catch for Eijun. He knew that being captain meant putting aside personal duties outside of baseball, but Eijun was worrying him senseless. Eijun refused to speak to him, nonetheless even look at him. "Shit, I did something wrong, didn't I?" Kazuya tried to be patient when it came to figuring out what was wrong with Eijun, but his patience was wearing thin.

"Eijun...what's wrong with you?"

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><p>Eijun had woken up to Kazuya's arms wrapped tightly around his waist, rendering him immobile. It wasn't everyday that he got to wake up to Kazuya still sleeping next to him. All Eijun wanted to do was snuggle deeper into the catchers chest and sleep for the rest of eternity.<p>

They had a game today and Eijun was feeling a bit under the weather. He had tried to clear his head by going out for a late run last night, but it had rained heavily upon him just as he made his fifth lap around the field.

Eijun carefully coughed into his hand, making it as muffled as possible. If Kazuya or Kuramochi found out that he was sick, he wouldn't be pitching in the game at all; instead, he'd be stuck in bed, bored completely out of his mind.

He would just have to suffer it out.

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><p>"Eijun, are you <em>sure<em> that you're alright? Your face is really flushed." Kazuya exclaimed as he put on his catchers gear. Eijun's face was flushed red, sweat dripped down from his forehead, and his eyes remained unfocused.

"I'm fine, Miyuki. You worry too much." Eijun hoarsely replied; Kazuya wasn't too convinced that Eijun was fine, but he was needed on the field to catch for Furuya. Kazuya gently pulled Eijun closer towards him and delicately placed a kiss on Eijun's burning hot forehead.

The heat that was radiating from Eijun couldn't be ignored. As Kazuya opened his mouth to question Eijun about it, Furuya had cleared his throat to announce his presence.

"Miyuki-senpai, you're needed on the field." Furuya said stoically as he shifted his gaze from the catcher over towards the southpaw. Kazuya was a bit reluctant to leave Eijun alone, but he knew that he had no choice; the team needed him.

"Eijun, don't push yourself too hard, alright? If you don't feel like you can pitch today, just sit back and take it easy." Once Kazuya had stepped away to start warming up, Furuya took the opportunity of being alone with Eijun to his advantage.

"Eijun, you should really sit this game out." Furuya stated bluntly, trying to show that he actually did care about Eijun's wellbeing, even if they were rivals. Eijun, on the other hand, took it as more of a challenge than Furuya being considerate towards him.

"And let you and Nori-senpai have all the fun? No way!" Eijun exclaimed, regretting raising his voice as he coughed harshly into his hand. Eijun hated being sick; he felt that it would make him look weak in the upperclassmen's eyes if he told them that he was feeling under the weather.

Furuya sighed and rubbed his temples to relieve a headache that had already started to form. Haruichi was always the more level headed and caring one when it came to the southpaw. Furuya tried to think of something that Haruichi would do to make Eijun think about things rationally.

"If you collapse on the mound, then what? What do you think Miyuki-senpai will do? Just because your relationship doesn't apply to you on the field, it doesn't mean that Miyuki-senpai has stopped caring about you." Furuya stated bluntly, turning away from the southpaw to go join Miyuki and the others on the field.

Eijun let the words that Furuya had told him sink in to his mind. While Eijun was still pretty new to the concept of love and dating - another guy to be precise - he didn't want to alarm Kazuya by suddenly blacking out...but he also didn't want to sit out and miss a game either.

* * *

><p>Seido was down by three points; Furuya had pitched to his limit, giving up three runs in the process. Coach Kataoka called in for a pitcher change, substituting Eijun in for Furuya. Eijun had been told he'd only be pitching for two innings; Kazuya having informed coach Kataoka about Eijun's condition.<p>

"Remember, don't push yourself too hard." Kazuya said as he helped Eijun warm up. Eijun nodded slowly, not really having heard what Kazuya had said. As the two took up their respective positions, Eijun felt the dizziness hit him like a brick, making his vision blurry.

He was able to send the pitch to Kazuya as best he could as he fought the dizziness; hearing the sound of the ball hitting the mitt allowed a smile to form upon his lips. Even if he was sick, he was still going to pitch to the best of his ability.

He'd struck out the batter and could already feel the nausea creeping up on him. He had hardly been able to stomach breakfast that morning and was already feeling it churning around inside of his stomach, ready to come up at any given second.

As he'd struck out the next batter, Eijun placed a hand on his stomach, cringing as his breakfast threatened to come up and ruin the entire game for him. Kazuya instinctively called for a timeout, running over to the mound hastily to check up on Eijun.

"Eijun? What's wrong?" Kazuya eyed Eijun from head to toe, awaiting a response from the southpaw. Eijun gripped his stomach and grimaced. "Miyuki...I feel really nauseas." Kazuya turned towards the dugout and felt the intense gaze of coach Kataoka burning into him as he called for a change in players; not just for Kawakami to substitute in for Eijun, but also for Ono to substitute in for Kazuya.

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><p>Eijun lay on his bunk, huddled up underneath piles of thick blankets, reading a Shoujo manga. He now understood why Kazuya had had so much fun ordering him around when he was sick; ordering people around was too much fun.<p>

Kazuya entered the room, a small bowl of soup in his hands. He grinned at Eijun and carefully made his way over towards the pitchers bunk and sat down on it. "How are you feeling?" Kazuya asked as he placed the bowl of soup down on a small, portable table that sat on the bunk. Eijun smiled tiredly at the catcher as he opened up the lid to the soup bowl, allowing the steam to come out of it.

"I feel better than I did yesterday, but I'm still pretty tired." Eijun hadn't been able to keep anything down the past two days, but today he'd managed to keep his breakfast and lunch down. Taking the spoon, he carefully places the spoon in the bowl, allowing the soup to fill up on it. Bringing the spoon up to his mouth, Eijun took a small sip of the warm soup, eyes widening at how delicious it was.

"How is it?" Kazuya asked, neatly organizing the manga's that Eijun owned. He hadn't bothered to wait for the cafeteria workers to fix a bowl of soup for Eijun, noting how long it had taken Haruichi and Furuya just to get soup for him when he was the one who had fallen ill.

A quick run to the convenience store to pick up a can of soup and twenty minutes to make the soup tasty enough for the pitchers taste were all he needed. Cooking was a great skill to have when most of the boys on the baseball team had no idea how to even use the stove.

"It's good." Eijun loved the taste that the soup had; no funky aftertaste or weird vegetables mixed in made it more delicious than it already was. Eijun quickly scarfed down the rest of the soup, having it sit nicely in his stomach.

"Miyuki?" Eijun called, resting his head against the catchers back, closing his eyes and inhaling the lingering smell of Kazuya's cologne. Upon hearing his name, Kazuya turned his head to look at the pitcher. "Hmm? What's wrong?"

Eijun shook his head, not up for engaging in conversation since his throat was hurting. "Nothing. I'm just glad that you're here." Kazuya smiled and gently pushed Eijun back down onto the bed, covered him up with the thick blankets, and then lightly kissed his forehead. "Try to get some sleep now, Eijun. I have to go see Youichi about something, so feel call or text me if you need anything."

Kazuya stood up from the bunk and waved his goodbye to Eijun as he stepped out of the dorm. _'Youichi said that he had something important that he wanted to talk to me about. Damn him and his vague words.'_

Kazuya climbed the stairs and walked down the corridor towards Zono's room. All he had gotten from Kuramochi was to meet up in Zono's room so they could discuss something important. Kazuya knocked on the door and waited for it to open.

To his surprise, Haruichi opened the door, inviting him inside to join the others. Kuramochi sat on one of the bunks, arms wrapped around Ryousuke's waist, head resting on one of his shoulders. Zono occupied the other, arms crossed, and a permanent scowl etched upon his face.

"What did I do now?" Kazuya inquired, sensing how tense the mood was in the room. "Haruichi here has overheard some very interesting gossip about Sawamura that you should hear about, Miyuki." Ryousuke said sharply as he turned his attention over towards his younger brother.

"Um...well...when I was walking to practice with Satoru-kun, Kanemaru-kun, and Toujou-kun, I overheard a bunch of guys talking rudely about Eijun-kun..." Haruichi nervously fidgeted in his spot, trying to avoid having Kazuya lash out at him. Kazuya simply raised a brow, curious as to what kind of gossip Haruichi could have overheard.

"Haruichi told us that they had said some pretty nasty things about Sawamura. Saying how you don't deserve to be seen with such a stupid, loser pitcher like him; you probably just felt sorry for him, and that you probably don't even bother give a shit to care about him anymore." Kuramochi's voice was like a knife stabbing into the catchers body. Kazuya could feel his blood boil inside of him. Whoever had the nerve to talk about his boyfriend must have thought they could say whatever they felt and not go unpunished.

"Who the **fuck** says shit like _that_? Eijun is one of the best damn things that's **ever** happened to me in my shitty sixteen years of life." Kazuya bellowed as he plunked himself down on the bunk besides Zono, irritated by what he'd just been told.

"That's probably what was eating him up. Eijun tried to avoid being anywhere near me because of what some assholes said to him." Kazuya sure as hell wasn't going to let them go unpunished for hurting Eijun's feelings. Eijun could be loud, childish, and obnoxious from time to time, but he was still a very sensitive person.

"Miyuki, before you do anything rash, you better think things over. Would Sawamura want you to go and fight someone, only for you to get your ass in trouble instead?" Zono's irritated voice questioned him. Kazuya dug his nails into the sheets, gritting his teeth as he tried to think of another way to go about the situation without resorting to physically hurting someone.

"What can I do then, Zono? It's not like I can just go up and tell them to lay off Eijun. Even if I do, it would only end up causing more problems than needed." Kazuya wanted to go out and find the guys who thought they could hurt another fellow teammates feelings and go unpunished for their actions. Kazuya wasn't exactly a violent person, but if someone happened to aggravate him enough, he would snap.

"Haruichi, go downstairs and see how Sawamura is doing." Ryousuke ordered, not wanting his younger brother to be around if Kazuya suddenly snapped and became violent. That was the last thing he wanted.

Haruichi obeyed his older brothers command without hesitation; stepping out of the room and shutting the door behind him without complaint, leaving the upperclassmen to their discussion.

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><p>Haruichi had never walked so fast in his life; while he was glad to get out of the room, he was worried about how Kazuya would take care of the situation. Haruichi had been so wrapped up in his thoughts that he'd accidentally missed a step.<p>

Haruichi's eyes widened under his bangs as he felt his body falling forward. Haruichi braced himself for impact with the hard, cold concrete, but it never happened. Feeling someone's strong arms around his small figure, Haruichi slowly opened his eyes, coming face to face with a complete stranger.

"Are you alright?" Haruichi nodded slowly, feeling a blush creep up onto his face. The stranger was much taller than him - like most people his age - and was also a bit intimidating. He strongly resembled somebody Haruichi knew, but he couldn't quite place who it was.

"I am Yuki Masashi. Who might you be?" Haruichi shyly looked down at his feet; not like Masashi could see even his eyes that were hidden behind the long, pink bangs that he'd grown out over the past few years. "I am...Kominato Haruichi." Haruichi said softly, fidgeting with his hands as his extreme nervousness took over.

"There's that little shit, Tetsu!" Jun's loud voice boomed from across the courtyard. Jun was the first to arrive on spot, giving Masashi a terrifying death glare. "You little fucking shit! You snuck off on your older brother and me on purpose, didn't you!?" Tetsuya pulled Jun away from Masashi by the back of his shirt. Obviously not impressed by either his boyfriend or younger brother.

"Masashi," Tetsuya's calm, deep voice sounded like that of a father reprimanding their child for leaving their side. "If you wanted to go off on your own so badly then you should have told me."

Haruichi took the time to carefully observe Masashi. He was much taller than Jun and had about five inches to Tetsuya. Unlike Tetsuya's messy, black hair, Masashi had a very closely shaven haircut. If Jun hadn't said anything, Haruichi would've assumed that Masashi was Tetsuya's _older_ brother.

"Forgive me, brother. But since you were extremely busy trying to rip Isashiki-san's pants off, you simply forgot that I existed." Tetsuya was unaffected by Masashi's words, having heard them more than once, but Jun, on the other hand, looked ready to commit treason.

"You damn brat. You're really working my nerves." If it weren't for the strong hold that Tetsuya had on Jun's arm, Jun would have made Tetsuya an only child.

Haruichi quickly slid away from the group as the door to Eijun's room opened up, revealing the dazed pitcher who had come out to see what all the noise was about. "Harucchi? What's going on?" Haruichi waisted no time in gently pushing his best friend back into the room, stepping inside, and then shutting the door behind him.

Eijun rubbed his eyes, yawning a bit as he sat on the bed next to Haruichi. "Eijun-kun, how are you feeling today?" Haruichi smoothed down some of the pitchers wild bed hair and chuckled lightly to himself as Eijun swatted his hand away.

"A lot better than I did yesterday." Eijun beamed at his best friend, flashing his teeth in the process. Haruichi looked over the manga's Eijun had, feeling an urge to straighten the stacks up neatly.

"Where's Miyuki? Is he still busy?" Eijun inquired out loud, causing Haruichi to stiffen. Haruichi smiled at Eijun, setting aside straightening up the manga's to sit down on the bunk besides Eijun. "Do you need something, Eijun-kun?"

Eijun stuck out his lower lip like that of a small child. While he knew Kazuya was busy, being the captain and catcher, he wanted to at least spend more than just a couple of minutes a day with him. They were supposed to be dating after all. "No. I'm just bored being in here all by myself, that's all."

Haruichi patted Eijun's back lightly, seeing how down his friend was about being sick. "Well, I'm here now, Eijun-kun. I'll stay here with you until Miyuki-senpai comes back." Eijun was his best friend, so of course he was going to stay with him...and God knows all the stupid things a sick, bored Eijun could do while he was alone and awake.

Eijun eased himself up from off of the bed, settling down on the ground to play one of Kuramochi's video games with Haruichi. "Which one would you like to play, Harucchi?" Haruichi took the spot next to Eijun, looking over each one of the games intensely and frowning at the genre. "I'm not really into combat games, Eijun-kun..."

Eijun shrugged it off and simply dug around through more of his roommates game collection. "No problem, Harucchi. Kuramochi-senpai has far more where those came from." Haruichi and Eijun continued to dig around through the collection, often disagreeing over a game; it was either far too violent for Haruichi's liking, too scary for Eijun, or had too many questionable, adult themes that both were far too innocent minded to even think twice about playing.

"I had no idea that Kuramochi-senpai had a Mario game." Eijun said, astonished by his discovery. Haruichi looked over the game and gave a thumbs up for approval that the game looked interesting enough for them to play together.

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><p>Kazuya had finally come up with a better solution than physically attacking the guys responsible for hurting Eijun's feelings. "I'll just inform coach Kataoka about this whole bullying situation and let him decide on what their punishment should be. Sound humane enough?" It had taken them over an hour to come up with a humane solution to the problem, and they had finally come to an agreement.<p>

Kazuya checked his phone, reading over a text that Eijun had sent him. "I'm heading out now, Eijun needs me." Kazuya exited the room, walking down the narrow passage that lead to the stairs, he checked his phone once more to make sure he didn't have any unanswered texts or calls.

Opening the door to Kuramochi and Eijun's room, he was greeted with an adorable sight. Eijun lay sprawled out on the bed, holding on tightly to Haruichi's tiny figure, fast asleep with a bit of drool coming out of his mouth as he dreamed pleasantly. Kazuya held up his phone and zoomed it in closer towards the two and snapped a picture of them sleeping soundly. While it could be used for potential blackmail against Eijun, he could also use it to make Furuya work extra harder at practice.

Kazuya gently pried Eijun's arms and hands off of the smaller boy and lifted Haruichi up onto his back. Eijun didn't stir; he simply turned over onto his side, still fast asleep. Kazuya walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him softly. Haruichi wasn't that light, so going up the stairs would be a challenge.

An epiphany struck Kazuya; Furuya was only three doors down from Eijun and Kuramochi's. As far as he knew, Kuramochi wouldn't be coming back tonight and would be keeping Ryousuke "occupied" for a while, so it wouldn't be entirely wrong of him to leave Haruichi with Furuya, Ryousuke's least favorite person on the baseball team.

Kazuya knocked on the door, tapping his foot as he waited for either Ono or Furuya to answer the door. The door finally opened after two minutes had passed, revealing a disheveled, half-asleep Furuya. "Miyuki-senpai, what are you doing out here?" He yawned, leaning against the doorframe rubbing his eyes to remove all traces of sleep.

"I brought you something that you might like~" Kazuya turned around, allowing Furuya to observe Haruichi's sleeping figure on his back. "Is it really alright for him to be here with me?" Furuya questioned, raising a brow at the catcher. If Ryousuke found out that Haruichi had spent the night in his room, Seido would be down a pitcher come morning.

"Ryou-san's gonna be pretty occupied with Youichi tonight, so I doubt that you have anything to worry about~" Kazuya explained, sensing the ace pitcher was worried that his life was endangered. When if Furuya simply glanced at Haruichi, he could almost feel Ryousuke's breath on his neck, sending shivers down his spine.

Furuya pried Haruichi off of Kazuya's back and held the pink haired boy in his arms. Haruichi was a deep sleeper; never one to stir at noise or by being moved. Furuya carefully laid Haruichi down on his bed, earning a small whine from him in the process.

"I'll leave you two alone then~ I gotta get back before Eijun wakes up." Kazuya chuckled lightly as he shut the door behind him, leaving the couple alone. The weather was starting to get chillier each night, reminding them that summer was going to be over very soon and that fall was beginning.

Kazuya shivered a bit in his hoodie, looking forward to getting inside the warm dorm room and snuggling up beside Eijun on the bed. Opening the door, Kazuya stepped inside, shutting it behind him, and smiled at Eijun still sleeping soundly on the bed.

Kazuya sat down on the bed next to Eijun and rubbed his back a bit, waking the pitcher up from his sleep. "Hey there, sleepy head." Eijun didn't respond, instead he closed his eyes and tried to fall back asleep. Kazuya's smile turned into a frown as he received no reply or reaction from Eijun.

"What's wrong, Eijun? Still not feeling well?" Kazuya brushed Eijun's dark bangs out of his face as he placed one of his cool hands on Eijun's forehead. Eijun was running a fever again. Kazuya cursed silently to himself as he removed his hand from Eijun's forehead. "Have you been running a fever this whole time?" Eijun nodded slightly, covering his face up with his blanket to avoid Kazuya's gaze.

"Eijun, I don't think this is just a common cold. Did you get a flu shot last week?" Kazuya asked, wiping away sweat that formed on Eijun's brow. Eijun scrunched up his face and shook his head. "I don't really like needles, so I never got one..." Eijun murmured as he sat up and leaned his head on Kazuya's shoulder. Eijun had never been too big of a fan of needles, or doctors in general.

"When your fever goes down, I'll have Takashima schedule you an appointment to get a flu shot." Eijun frowned and shook his head, not too fond of the idea of having to get a shot. "Will you go with me, Miyuki?" Eijun murmured, hoping Kazuya would say yes and relieve him of his nervousness.

Kazuya wrapped an arm around Eijun's waist, pulling him in and lightly kissed his forehead. "Of course I will, silly." Eijun smiled at Kazuya's words, feeling his eyelids grow heavy, he yawned slightly and closed his tired eyes, his head still on Kazuya's shoulder.

"Let's get some sleep, Eijun." Kazuya flopped back onto the bed, holding onto Eijun as he fell asleep, nuzzling his head into the crook of Eijun neck, he fell soundly asleep as he listened to Eijun breath in and out.

* * *

><p>"Alright sweetie, this may hurt a bit." Eijun bit down on his lower lip, grabbing ahold of Kazuya's hand and squeezing it tightly as the doctor inserted the needle into his left arm. Eijun had his eyes shut tightly, still squeezing Kazuya's hand, as the doctor retracted the needle, placing a red bandaid over the puncture wound. "Alright, we're all done. You're free to go."<p>

Eijun opened his eyes and looked over at Kazuya. The catcher smiled warmly at him, helping him down from off of the table. "Thanks, doc~" the two waved goodbye to the doctor and headed down the hall to the waiting room to leave.

Kazuya had managed to convince Takashima to let them do a bit of fall shopping in town as the weather had started to become colder as summer ended. The two walked through town together, laughing and joking around. As the wind blew, Eijun shivered and rubbed his bare arms as the goosebumps formed on them. He had forgotten to bring a jacket or a hoodie along with him and was regretting it as the cold wind blew harder.

"Miyuki, can I wear your hoodie, please?" Eijun pleaded with puppy dog eyes. Kazuya couldn't say no to Eijun; pulling off his red hoodie, he handed it over to Eijun, who put it on swiftly, having the hoodie fall directly above his knees.

The sight of Eijun wearing his hoodie was enough to cause Kazuya to take out his phone to and snap a picture of it. This was going to be his new wallpaper for sure. As Eijun kept pulling the sleeves of the red hoodie up, Kazuya couldn't help but smile to himself.

"You're honestly too cute in that hoodie, ya know?" Kazuya commented, trying to find a long-sleeved shirt that would fit Eijun's tiny form. While Eijun had a muscular figure, he was still skinny and short. Eijun blushed a bright red as he glared at the catcher. "Oh, shut up."

"I can't find anything that would fit you, so let's just call it a day here." Kazuya said as he wrapped an arm around Eijun's shoulders. "What about the money?" Kazuya grinned at him mischievously. "Let's go get ice-cream, Eijun. My treat~"

* * *

><p>Eijun and Kazuya walked back to the dorm, holding onto their ice-cream cones as they laughed at something only they found funny. "When we were first years, Youichi fell asleep in class once, so I drew facial hair on his face with a sharpie and he didn't even notice until he was getting dressed for practice and Ryou-san was like,"Youichi, are you trying to prove something?" And then everyone in the locker rooms just stopped and stared at him, and then they just started laughing."<p>

Eijun laughed loudly, thankful that he had ice-cream to soothe his sore throat. Kazuya had been generous enough to buy them ice-cream cones; chocolate for Eijun, and vanilla for Kazuya. "That was hilarious. Do you have anymore stories?" Kazuya smirked mischievously at Eijun. "Now, what kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't have any good blackmail stories about my classmates and senpai?"

As the two settled down on the stairs, Kazuya licked his vanilla ice-cream cone and stared up at the setting sun in the orange colored sky. The two of them had been granted one more day off from practice by coach Kataoka and they were going to use it to their advantage by telling each other stories. As Kazuya begun to tell another story, Eijun had stuck his ice cream too far up, getting it on the tip of his nose.

"Ah, it's cold!" Eijun cried out, nearly dropping his ice cream cone in the process. Kazuya chuckled at Eijun's action as he took one of the spare napkins and wiped the chocolate ice cream off of Eijun's nose.

"Miyuki, do you love me?" Eijun murmured, staring at his ice cream cone with teary eyes. He hadn't forgotten about what the other first years had said to him; their words stung in his heart. Kazuya moved closer towards Eijun and pinched his cheek with his free hand. "Of course, I do. You're my adorable idiot."

Eijun had fallen silent. Kazuya knew he would have to persuade the pitcher to tell him what was on his mind. Kazuya wrapped an arm around Eijun's waist and pulled him closer, letting Eijun's head rest on his shoulder. "What's wrong, Eijun? You know you can tell me anything." Eijun still wouldn't speak to him. Kazuya hated the silence that grew around Eijun; it just wasn't the same Eijun that he'd fallen in love with.

"Please Eijun, just tell me what's wrong." Eijun looked down at his ice-cream once more and back up at Kazuya's hazel eyes. The tears from Eijun's eyes had started to overflow and his bottom lip trembled as he choked out what was on his mind. "Miyuki...my classmates...they don't think...that I'm good enough for you...and that I'm holding you back..." Kazuya rubbed Eijun's back gently as the sobs Eijun had held back came out. It never ceased to hurt him whenever he saw Eijun cry. No matter what he said to try and soothe Eijun, he just continued to cry even harder until he'd completely worn himself out.

Eijun had grown silent, exhausted from all the crying he'd done. Kazuya lifted Eijun up into his arms, carrying him back to the dorm. After placing Eijun down on the bed, Kazuya settled down next to him and wrapped his arms around the pitchers body tightly.

"Why did you keep this a secret from me?" Kazuya murmured, staring into Eijun's golden eyes as they lay in the darkness of the room. Eijun burrowed his face into the catchers chest, hoping Kazuya wouldn't notice that he had started to cry again.

"You're always so busy with your role as captain that I didn't want to bother you..." Eijun's response was muffled as Kazuya held onto him tighter. Kazuya knew being team captain kept him occupied with trying to make the new Seido baseball team as powerful as the old one, but he honestly couldn't understand why Eijun hadn't come to him sooner.

"I wanted to tell you, but...I was scared that you'd just laugh at me." Eijun choked out, his throat was becoming dry and his voice hoarse from all the crying he'd done. Kazuya's hold on him never loosened.

"Why would you think that? I'm pretty sure that Youichi told you that I was bullied in middle school, right? I don't want you to ever feel like you can't come and talk to me if you have a problem."

Eijun drifted off to sleep that night, a small smile on his face as Kazuya held onto him while they slept. Somehow Eijun knew that by tomorrow morning, things would be alright.

* * *

><p>Eijun had woken up a bit later than usual, shivering to himself a bit as he walked towards the field. To Eijun's surprise, the guys that had been bullying him weren't anywhere to be seen. It struck him as rather peculiar. Eijun shrugged it off, wandering around the field until he found Kazuya waiting for him by the bullpen.<p>

"Hey Eijun, how are you today?" Eijun smiled brightly as he nodded at the question. "I'm fine, just a bit chilly."

Kazuya smiled warmly at him as he opened the gate to the bullpen up, allowing Eijun to go in first. "If you're cold Eijun, I'll warm you up." Kazuya said as he crouched down, holding out his mitt for Eijun's pitch. "Thanks..." Eijun mumbled as he gripped the ball in his left hand. It had been days since he'd last touched a baseball or even practiced with Kazuya like old times.

Eijun released the ball, seeing it fly towards the catchers mitt. The sound of the ball hitting the mitt echoed through the bullpen, causing a bright smile to form on Eijun's face. Kazuya threw the ball back towards him, a smirk forming on his face.

"I hope those days off didn't make you too rusty, Eijun~" Kazuya laughed, seeing how Eijun pouted at his statement. Teasing Eijun was a lot of fun; the pitchers facial expressions never ceased to amuse him, even in the roughest of times.

"Is that the best you got? C'mon, Eijun! I've seen you throw better pitches than that!" Kazuya grinned, trying to hold back a fit of laughter as he watched Eijun glare at him. Eijun gripped the ball even tighter, sending it flying towards Kazuya even faster than before. Kazuya easily caught the pitch that the scowling pitcher had sent with ease.

Their practice was cut short when one of the first years called from behind the fence,"Miyuki-senpai, the coach wants to see you." Eijun frowned slightly, not wanting Kazuya leave while they were still in the middle of practice. Walking over towards Kazuya, who was trying to remove his gear, Eijun figured he could make himself useful and help out.

As Kazuya fiddled with his chest protector, Eijun pulled the helmet off of Kazuya's head, letting the catchers bangs fall freely across his face. "Oh, you want to help?" Kazuya asked, smirking at Eijun who had started to blush from the catchers words. "M-Maybe..." As Eijun helped Kazuya remove the shin guards, he could feel Kazuya's warm breath against his neck; it made every hair on his body stand up.

"I'll see you later, Eijun." With a quick peck on the cheek, Kazuya was out of the bullpen before Eijun had time to form words. Eijun pouted slightly to himself; he had just gotten better and rejoined practice, but there went Kazuya, leaving only after they've started.

Eijun flopped down onto the ground and threw the ball up into the air, catching it just as it fell towards the ground. He knew that he could always just go and ask another catcher to catch for him, but the feeling he got when he practiced with Kazuya or Chris differed from when he practiced with other catchers.

Eijun threw the ball up into the air once more, but didn't bother to catch it as it fell back down. It had been ten minutes and Kazuya still hadn't returned. Eijun groaned as he allowed his body to fall backwards onto the dusty, hard ground.

This morning practice was going to be long and boring.

* * *

><p>Morning practice had long since ended. Eijun had gotten tired of waiting around in the bullpen for Kazuya to return. When Haruichi had come by and offered to help Eijun improve his batting, the pitcher hadn't hesitated to take the offer up.<p>

Eijun walked along the trail towards the bath, hoping that there would be someone else besides him in the bath. Every time he thought back to the time he'd ended up with Kataoka in the bath, he could feel every hair on his body stand up and it sent shivers down his spine.

Eijun opened the door to the bath, noting that he was the last one to bathe. Eijun pulled off his shoes, pushing them aside, before removing his smelly, white socks. Eijun slowly pulled off his sweat drenched t-shirt over his head, tossing it into one of the baskets. The last few clothing pieces that went were his pants and boxers.

Eijun wrapped a clean, white towel around his waist, tying it in a loose knot. He picked up his personal hygiene bucket that contained his soap, washcloth, and shampoo, before heading into the bath.

Eijun sighed to himself as he entered the empty bath, relieved that Kataoka wasn't sitting in the bath, watching his every move from behind his shaded eyes. Eijun often wondered why Kataoka wore sunglasses, even in the bath of all places. What startled him the the most was that Kataoka's sunglasses never fogged up from the steam.

Removing the towel from around his waist, Eijun stepped into the lukewarm water, sighing from the comfort it provided him. The warm water never failed to help him relax and temporarily ease him of his problems. Eijun slide back, allowing his head to rest against the back wall as he thought of what he would say to Kazuya when he saw him again.

Eijun sat up a bit when he heard the sound of footsteps coming closer towards the bath door. To his luck, it would possibly end up being Kataoka. Once was mortifying enough, but a second time...?

Eijun huffed in a bit of air, causing his cheeks to puff out like a chipmunk - or better yet, Kawakami's cheeks - as he let his body slide underneath the water as a possible attempt to hide himself. While he knew it was childish, it was the only plan he could resort too without being mortified for a second time.

Eijun was running low on breath. He knew he couldn't hold his breath underwater forever, but if he came out, then Kataoka would surely be facing him. Eijun felt like his lungs were burning, obviously begging for air. Eijun inwardly said his prayers as he sprung up from the bath, gasping for air.

To his surprise, and initial shock, Kataoka hadn't been the one to join him in the bath... "Eijun, what do you think you're doing springing up out of the bath like that, I almost had a heart attack!" Eijun felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment as he tried to avoid looking downwards at Kazuya's towel-less figure sitting on the ground.

"Uh...um...I'm really sorry, Miyuki." Eijun stuttered out, avoiding any sort of eye contact with Kazuya. Eijun couldn't explain why, but he was a little shy about being in the bath alone with Kazuya. They had taken baths together before, but that had been long before they had gotten together. It didn't matter if they were both guys; Eijun still felt shy being around Kazuya in the bath.

"Don't worry, I'm not hurt or anything. I just didn't expect to see you here." Kazuya said as he eased himself up from off of the cold, slippery bath floor. Kazuya had wanted to rid himself of the sweat that he'd worked up looking around the whole campus for any sign of Eijun, who'd up and left the bullpen.

"Have you washed your hair yet?" Kazuya's voice asked, causing Eijun to peer up at him, feeling a bit awkward in their current situation. There were so many things that could happen to them while they were alone in the bath together. Eijun shook his head, unable to find his voice as he tried to shake away any embarrassing thoughts that filled his head at the moment.

"Come out here and I'll wash it for you." Kazuya said casually, pulling up a bath stool near the shower. It was a good thing Kazuya had terrible vision; Eijun wouldn't be able to explain why he was blushing so hard. "Are you coming out or not?"

Eijun cast his eyes downwards towards his reflection in the water. Eijun knew Kazuya would laugh when he heard what Eijun was about to request. "Miyuki...can you close your eyes for a moment?" There was a light chuckle that escaped from the catchers mouth as he looked over at Eijun. "Are you really that shy around me, _Ei-chan_? You've really changed a lot since we've started dating." Kazuya remarked as he covered up his eyes with his hands, a smirk still evident on his face.

Eijun stood up and stepped the tub carefully, trying to avoid slipping on the wet floor as he grabbed ahold of his towel and wrapped it tightly around his waist as he strode over towards the bath stool. "Is that a bad thing, Miyuki?" Eijun pondered out loud, sitting down on the stool and turning on the water.

"Hmm? Nah, I actually like this side of you. It's really cute to see you get flustered up over little things." Kazuya chuckled, removing his hands from his eyes as he pulled up a nearby stool. Kazuya sat down on the stool behind Eijun, grabbing ahold of the shampoo bottle and pouring a decent amount into his hands.

"Close your eyes tightly." Eijun shut his eyes tightly, hoping that Kazuya would be gentle when he started to wash his hair. Eijun could feel Kazuya's hands on his head, lathering his dark brown hair with shampoo. Kazuya's fingers started to run through his hair gently, removing any tangles. Kazuya slowly begun to scrub Eijun's scalp gently, as if he were washing a small child's hair.

Eijun admitted, it felt pretty good to have someone else wash his hair for once.

* * *

><p>Kazuya had insisted on walking him to class, due to Eijun being a first year, his classes were all on the first floor. Many of the first year girls, some of whom had major crushes on the catcher, gasped in delight as Kazuya walked by them.<p>

It was no secret that Kazuya was dating Eijun; the catcher never ceased to state they were in a relationship just as clear as day. Eijun found it to be embarrassing having everyone know about them, but at least he had no competition for Kazuya's love.

"We're here, Miyuki." Eijun mumbled, tapping his foot in annoyance. Kazuya was still standing next to him, observing the first years in Eijun's class with great interest in his eyes. While he had indeed been a first year last year, part of him still liked walking and picking up Eijun from his first and last classes just to reminisce.

"Fine, fine. At least let me walk you to your seat." Kazuya said, earning a very loud protest from a red faced, embarrassed Eijun. Many of the first years turned their attention towards the two, chuckling slightly at them before resorting back to their conversations or work. They had gotten used to seeing Kazuya and Eijun together in the mornings before classes started and in the afternoon, after classes ended before baseball practice started.

The bell for class would be ringing soon, and Kazuya had yet to even say goodbye to Eijun. Eijun had given up on trying to convince Kazuya to leave, knowing it was futile. Taking his seat in front of Kanemaru's desk, Eijun pulled out his notebook, pencil, and textbooks, ready for class to start.

Since the fall tournaments were coming up in just a matter of weeks, Eijun had shifted gears, putting forth his best effort and fully undivided attention during class. If his grades and tests scores were low, he wouldn't be allowed to participate in the fall tournament at all; instead, he would stuck in school taking makeup exams.

"Aren't you supposed to be in class?" Eijun asked as he slightly pushed the catcher away from him. Kazuya shot him one of his famous grins, obviously having nothing to worry about. "You're so cold, Eijun. But, I'll leave you be...for now~" Kazuya picked up one of Eijun's hands in his own and kissed the top of it, earning him a slap from the embarrassed pitcher.

Kazuya chuckled to himself as he left the first years floor, nurturing his sore, reddened cheek. Reaching his classroom, Kuramochi looked up at him from his spot, lips turning up into a smirk. Kuramochi was ready to start joking even before Kazuya could sit down.

"Kyehaha, what the hell happened to your face!?"

With a boyfriend like Eijun and best friend like Kuramochi, who needs enemies?

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><p><strong>And that concludes chapter 8~ ^_^<strong>


	9. Chapter 9: Relax

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**I've gotten the first three chapters edited and revised~ :D Now onto editing and revising that long ass chapter 4. 8| **

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><p><strong><span>Chapter 9: Relax <span>**

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><p>"Miyuki, are you listening?" Kazuya sighed as he shifted his gaze from the drinks in his hands back up to Ochiai's face. Kazuya wasn't intentionally trying to be rude by shifting eye contact or engaging in conversation with Ochiai, there was just a part of him that didn't like the man at all.<p>

Kazuya had just been in the dorm with Eijun, ready to watch a movie when Eijun asked him to go get him a drink, claiming he was thirsty from eating just a small bag of potato chips. Kazuya had refused at first, but when Eijun started to pout and stare at him, ready to turn on the waterworks at any given second, Kazuya found it difficult to say no anymore.

How did a simple trip to get drinks from the vending machine lead to a run in with Ochiai of all people? Kazuya seriously regretted not making Eijun go out and get his own drink. Eijun was Ochiai's least favorite person after all, so maybe Ochiai wouldn't have spared him a second glance if Eijun was the one who had gone instead?

"I'm sorry, sir. What did you say again?" Ochiai begun his discussion about the baseball team and all the other things Kazuya had heard about more than once, but when Ochiai mentioned Eijun, Kazuya tuned back in.

"Sawamura is rather...odd. Don't you think? He's basically a shadow that chases after Furuya at full speed." Kazuya had a bit of difficulty understanding what Ochiai was trying to say to him, but he knew it involved Eijun and Furuya.

"I don't exactly see it that way, sir. Eijun is odd, yes. But his oddness is what makes him Eijun after all. As for the shadow part, I see it as more of a rivalry. They want what the other has; Eijun wants Furuya's position as the ace, and Furuya wants Eijun's endurance to the heat." Kazuya could feel a headache start to form as he stood in the cold, freezing his ass off as he talked to Ochiai about the two pitchers. Maybe Eijun would come out of the dorm to look for him? It would certainly give Kazuya an opportunity to end the conversation with Ochiai. Kazuya knew that it was hopeless; Eijun wasn't going to unwrap himself from the thick layers of blankets he'd cocooned himself up in and leave the warm dorm into the cold just to go see why he hadn't returned with the drinks.

"Miyuki, what you must understand is that as long as Furuya is on this team, Sawamura will never be the ace. Even if he works hard and learns to control his pitch, he will never surpass Furuya's level. I would never grant someone the ace title that they don't deserve if there is someone else on the team who is much more skilled than them." Ochiai stated simply. While Kazuya fought off any emotion on his face, he could feel his blood start to boil underneath his skin.

Kazuya wasn't brave enough to tell Ochiai that he was being biased and favoring one pitcher over another. He wasn't Eijun; Eijun was never one to stay quiet if he felt someone was being unfair, he stood up for Kawakami when Azuma shouted insult after insult at him, never caring what would happen to him in the process.

Kazuya took out his phone from the pocket of his gray hoodie and texted Eijun. _'Coach Ochiai has me cornered near the vending machines and I can't get away. You still want that drink, right?' _Kazuya sent the text, hoping Eijun would actually read it, unlike the texts from Eijun's old friends - mostly from Wakana - in Nagano that piled up endlessly in his phone.

As Ochiai awaited an answer from Kazuya, Eijun turned the corner wearing the red hoodie Kazuya had loaned to him several times. Eijun cleared his throat to announce his presence, tapping his foot impatiently. Kazuya cautiously stepped around Ochiai, forcing an apologetic smile onto his face. "Sorry, sir. I forgot that I was supposed to be helping Eijun study for a test."

Before Eijun could question him or raise a brow, Kazuya had grabbed him by the arm and pulled him all the way back to the dorm. "What's the big deal?" Eijun cried out, rubbing his sore arm in the process. While Eijun was a bit oblivious to the fact that Ochiai didn't like him all too much, but Kazuya was another story. Ochiai always said _"__outstanding talent makes the cut"_, he believed that Kazuya was far more than just an outstanding catcher.

"He's a biased old man, Eijun. I don't like him." Kazuya murmured low enough so only Eijun could hear. Eijun frowned, but decided not to push the subject; he was cold, grouchy, tired, and thirsty and Kazuya was not making his night any better.

"Let's just go inside, Miyuki. I'm getting cold standing around out here." Eijun grumbled as he uncooked the door and stepped inside. Kazuya followed him in, walking over towards the blankets on the ground in front of the TV and settling down. Kazuya patted the spot next to him for Eijun to sit down. Eijun had been extremely grouchy since he woke up, and Kazuya never ceased with the teasing...until Eijun had gotten fed up and kicked him out of the room.

Eijun sat down besides the catcher, scooting closer towards him and resting his head on Kazuya's shoulder. Kazuya grabbed one of the thick blankets in front of them and wrapped it around their shoulders, providing them a bit of warmth as they snuggled up next to one another on the floor in front of the mini TV.

Wrapping an arm around Eijun's shoulders like he'd done many times before, Kazuya slightly pulled the pitchers smaller body towards his own. Eijun glanced up at him for a couple of seconds before restoring his full attention back towards the movie, too tired to care about what the catcher did.

"Have you told your parents about us?" Eijun turned towards Kazuya, turning down the volume on the TV to reply. "I was thinking that I should tell them in person. They seem to _really_ like you." Kazuya chuckled to himself as he remembered the "family welcoming" Eijun's father had given him.

If only his father could be like that...

* * *

><p>As Eijun pulled on his shirt for bed, he couldn't help but think of why Kazuya brought up the topic of his parents. His parents and grandfather had taken a great liking to Kazuya, often spamming up his phone asking about how they were doing.<p>

Kazuya never talked about his father, besides the usual, vague "he's an asshole" answer. Eijun was curious just how big of an asshole Kazuya's father was. Maybe Kazuya was just exaggerating? Maybe his father wasn't so bad. "Miyuki?" Eijun asked, settling down next to the catcher on the bed, giving off his cutest face that would make Kazuya agree to listen.

"What's up?" Eijun was giving him_ "that" _look; golden eyes wide, big smile, and an innocent expression etched out onto his face. Eijun only gave him that look if he wanted something.

"We've been to my place before and you've met my family and friends, but I've been so curious about your father." Kazuya's eyes widened in shock as he heard what had just come out of Eijun's mouth.

It was almost as if Eijun had admitted to cheating on him behind his back; it was just incomprehensible.

"No. I'm sorry, Eijun, but...no."

* * *

><p>Eijun had woken up far too early; it was only four in the morning and practice didn't start until eight. Eijun tried to fall back asleep; he'd tossed and turned, counted out baseballs in his mind, burying his face into Kazuya's chest; even going as far as making the catcher switch sides with him so he could face the wall, but nothing helped.<p>

Eijun knew that his curiosity was never a good thing, especially when it came to the catcher, but Kazuya was so vague when he talked about his home life. What was he trying to hide? Eijun sat up, shaking Kazuya a bit to make the catcher wake up. "Ugh...Eijun? What time is it?" Kazuya groggily asked, tightening his grip around Eijun's waist as he buried his face into the pitchers stomach.

"Can you let me out?" Eijun tried not to sound too suspicious; it was four in the morning and he was wide awake. Kazuya groaned, letting go of the pitchers waist as he sat up, folding his legs up towards his chest to make room for Eijun to climb out of the bunk.

"Where are you going?" Kazuya yawned, stretching his legs outwards as he flopped back down onto the bunk, rolling over onto his side to face the wall. Eijun had woken him up for the _fourth_ time that morning and Kazuya wasn't all too happy about it.

"Bathroom." Eijun whispered hastily as he carefully moved towards the desk, taking the catchers phone from off of it and storing it in his back pocket. Kazuya didn't question him as he left the room. If Eijun hadn't woken him up too many times, he would've followed the pitcher, but he was too tired to even think straight.

* * *

><p>Eijun shivered against the harsh wind that blew that morning, regretting not bringing a hoodie or a jacket with him. The boys bathroom wasn't far from his dorm, but the cold made it feel even farther. Nobody was up, making the campus feel eerie and deserted due to the darkness that surrounded the campus. The only source of light came from the moon and the nearby street lights near the campus.<p>

Eijun pushed the bathroom door open, stepping inside and turning on the lights. Pulling out the phone from his back pocket, Eijun darted into one of the stalls, locking it behind him as he opened the phone.

Eijun decided to start with Kazuya's photos first, deeming them safe enough to look through. There were mostly just pictures of him and Kazuya together on it. Eijun exited out of the photos, unable to find anything of interest in them. Eijun pressed the voicemail button, gulping a bit as he lowered the volume and pressed play on the first one entitled: "home".

_"Kazuya, have you been keeping your distance away from the fags of Seido? I sure as hell hope so, because to haven't been picking up your phone lately. Is there something that I, your father, should know about? Don't tell me that your so called "friends" queerness has been rubbing off on you? They're disgusting, Kazuya. You shouldn't hang around with fags; they may influence you negatively. I will be coming down shortly to see one of your games soon, so I expect to see some good results." _

Voicemail after voicemail, the hateful words piled up. The tears poured out of Eijuns eyes ad he clamped a hand over his mouth to keep himself from letting a sob out; what did Kazuya do to be treated this way by his own father?

It just wasn't fair...

* * *

><p>Kazuya had awoken to find that Eijun hadn't returned back. It worried him endlessly as he thought of all the negative things that could have happened to Eijun. Kazuya knew Eijun hated being fussed over, but Kazuya just couldn't help it. Eijun was too naïve for his own good that if Kazuya wasn't around him, Eijun would easily go off with someone dangerous.<p>

"Youichi, did Eijun come back here?" Kazuya asked, pulling a hoodie over his shirt as he tried to think of just where Eijun had gone off too. Kuramochi had been busy fussing with his hair when Kazuya had asked the question. Scowling as he accidentally poured far too much hair gel into his hands, he whipped his head around and glared at the catcher.

"He was here when I woke up and left shortly before you woke up." Kazuya groaned, flopping back onto the bed as he mentally kicked himself for not going with Eijun. How could he have missed Eijun? Eijun was the second loudest person at Seido - Jun being the first.

"He mumbled something about you and the bullpen and just left after he changed his clothes." Kuramochi stated as he gelled up his hair carefully, trying to avoid having a mishap with the gel. Kazuya couldn't ever recall anything about Eijun and the bullpen - other than practice and their confessions - whatever it was, Kazuya guessed that he'd find out soon enough.

* * *

><p>Eijun had been pitching to the net for at least ten minutes as he tried to take his mind off of Kazuya and the events of that morning. Kazuya had promised to catch for him for an entire week and Eijun was impatiently awaiting the catchers arrival. Kazuya never had a good sense of time, though Eijun was no better; his timing was always off on certain things.<p>

Eijun shuddered at the memories of accidentally walking in on Furuya and Haruichi in the storage shed having one of their nasty lovers quarrels and having to stand there watching them yell at each other until Haruichi started crying and Eijun had to find a way to fix it, fearing Ryousuke's "older brother instincts" would kick in.

Eijun hadn't noticed the extra shadow being cast along with his on the ground, until-

**"EEEEEKKK!"**

Kazuya's hands had grabbed ahold of his waist, causing him to let out an extremely high pitched scream. There wasn't a player on campus - retired or not - who hadn't heard Eijun's scream.

Eijun glared over at Kazuya who was laughing so hard that he had to use the fence of the bullpen to support himself. It was embarrassing enough to have Kazuya sneak up and grab him out of nowhere, but did he really have to do that _now..._of all days? What was worse, was the fact that he screamed like a little girl on a roller coaster as it accelerated down the hill at full speed.

As Kazuya managed to stop his hysterical laughing, Eijun's pout couldn't have been anything but good. "Sorry, sorry! But you're just too cute not to tease." Kazuya stated as he patted Eijun's head.

"Miyuki, there's have something I need to ask you." Eijun's tone was serious; his whole demeanor was serious to the point where Kazuya had to hold back the urge to crack a joke about it.

_'Oh shit...he's breaking up with me, isn't he!?' _Kazuya's mind was stuck on replaying the same words, almost as if it had no doubts that was the reason why Eijun was being serious with him. How long had it been!? A few weeks? Surely Eijun couldn't be ending it now; they haven't even kissed each other on the lips yet!

"So...we've been together for a couple of weeks and...I just wanted to make it up to you for that one time at the movies, so..." Eijun paused in his sentence, digging around in his back pocket and pulling out two movie tickets. Eijun held one out for the catcher to take, cheeks bright red, yet determined to keep his eyes on the catcher.

"Eijun...that's really...wow, I'm at a loss for words." Kazuya was speechless; usually it was _him_ who made most of the plans, even before they were dating. Eijun was maturing a bit too fast for his liking. Taking the movie ticket from the pitcher, Kazuya stared down at it, reading the title. He'd seen the movie already, but Eijun didn't need to know that.

"We have to use them by tonight, so...if you're not busy...will you go on a date with me?" Eijun's tone was surprisingly soft for someone who could be so loud; Eijun's golden eyes shined with hope as he stared into the catchers light brown ones.

Taking Eijun's hand in his own, Kazuya pulled it up towards his cheek, letting it rest there as he leaned in closer to Eijun's face. They were so close that their noses nearly touched. What was Kazuya going to do?

Kazuya kissed Eijun's cheek, his husky voice answering with,"Of course."

* * *

><p>Eijun stood in front of the mirror, buttoning up his white dress shirt. He knew that it didn't matter what he wore - they were just going to the movies - but he still wanted to look his best. White dress shirt, dark blue jeans, and a pair of black sneakers was the outfit Eijun had picked out, but he still felt like it was lacking something.<p>

Shuffling through his belongings, Eijun noticed his white hat - the one all of his friends in Nagano had written on the inside - amongst the clothes. He knew that it was silly, but it was sort of like a good luck charm to him. Placing it on his head, Eijun turned it sideways; the way that Kazuya always wore his hats.

Taking one last look in the mirror, Eijun sucked in his breath as he walked out of the dorm. Kazuya was waiting for him outside the room, nearly losing his breath as he looked Eijun over. Whipping out his phone from the pocket of his faded jeans, Kazuya snapped yet another photo of Eijun. Eijun still had no idea why Kazuya always took pictures of him, but he guessed that it was important to the catcher.

"You look great, Eijun."

Kazuya had insisted on paying for their popcorn and drinks, handing over the money before Eijun could protest. As the two sat in the movie theater - Kazuya's hand resting upon Eijun's on the arm rest - Eijun leaned his head on Kazuya's head as the movie played out on the screen. They'd found themselves sitting in the far back of the theater, away from everyone else, but the view of the screen was still nice.

As the movie progressed, Eijun sat up in his seat and tapped Kazuya's shoulder. The catcher had been zoning out, unable to pay full attention to the movie playing. All Kazuya could think about was how they were on a date; their first _official_ date. Turning his head, Kazuya smiled at Eijun warmly. "What's up?" Eijun leaned towards his ear, whispering something Kazuya had dreaded the most.

"I need to use the restroom." Kazuya dreaded those words as much as he dreaded his father. The last time he'd let Eijun leave his sight, he'd nearly gotten hurt when a group of guys approached him. There was no way in **hell** he was ever going to let that happen to Eijun again.

Kazuya stood up, pulling Eijun up from his seat, walking out of the theater and into the empty halls. The restrooms were down the hall near the snack stands; not a single person was to be seen standing around, but Kazuya wasn't going to take any chances.

"You didn't have to follow me..." Eijun grumbled, while he knew that Kazuya was just trying to protect him, the catcher was being far too overly protective of him for his liking. "Eijun, if something bad happened to you without me being around, I'd never be able to live with myself."

Not waiting for an answer from the pitcher, Kazuya gave Eijun a light push inside. He decided to just stand outside the restroom and wait for the pitcher to be done, knowing how shy Eijun was around him.

* * *

><p>Kazuya had been so busy changing the background on his phone to a picture he and Eijun had taken a few days ago that he hadn't noticed he had company.<p>

"Kazuya~ Long time no see, eh?" Kazuya cringed at the sound of the oh-so-familiar high pitched voice. Narumiya Mei was standing in front of him a grin sprouting on his face; big, blue eyes full of curiosity. Kazuya cursed his timing; leave it to Mei to be here at the same exact time as him and Eijun.

"So...what are you doing standing around here?" Mei questioned, his grin widening to the point where Kazuya thought it'd rip his entire face off. Damn the blond and his curiosity.

"I'm on a date." Kazuya replied, hoping Eijun would hurry up so they could get back to the movie. As much as Kazuya liked Mei, they _were_ rivals, and seeing someone you lost too a couple of months ago wasn't exactly pleasant.

"What a coincidence~ I am too!" Mei's eyes were full of excitement as he told Kazuya that he as well was here on a date. Kazuya could only wonder who in their right mind would go on a date with Mei of all people.

"Oh, really? With who?" Kazuya asked mischievously, a smirk growing on his face. Maybe Mei was just lying about being on a date just because he was on one. Kazuya's smirk widened as he decided to mess with the ace of Inashiro's head.

"Mei, describe your date for me."

Mei blinked in confusion, tilting his head to the side as he carefully mused over what Kazuya had said. Did Kazuya think he was lying? Well, two could play at that game. "My date is a guy, obviously. He's my adorable kouhai. He has dark brown hair and eyes, and he's also my catcher since Masa-san retired."

Kazuya couldn't really think of anyone on Inashiro's team - none that he knew of at the least - that matched the description Mei had given him. As he was about to ask Mei for a name, the blond was smiling away like an idiot, looking away from him towards the doorway of the bathroom.

"Ah~ It's Sawamura!" Mei exclaimed cheerfully, waving at the other pitcher enthusiastically. Kazuya spun around to be greeted by the sight of Eijun standing beside him. Eijun looked up at Kazuya with a look of confusion, unsure of if he should say anything back to Mei.

"Wait- Sawamura, is Kazuya your date!?" Eijun felt his cheeks heat up as he turned his attention towards the ground to stare at his feet, nodding slowly to affirm the other pitchers assumption. Kazuya slinked an arm protectively around Eijun's waist, pulling him closer towards his side. "Yup~ Eijun and I are a couple. We've been together for a few weeks."

Mei opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by his name being called out by a brunet running towards them with a big bucket of popcorn in his arms. "Mei-san! Sorry it took so long...the line was- _hmph..."_ Mei grabbed the brunet by his tie and pulled him down towards him, pressing their lips together firmly as if providing proof for Kazuya that he wasn't lying.

Mei pulled back, smirking at Kazuya, leaving the brunet he'd just kissed extremely flustered up and mortified about what Mei had just done. "Kazuya, this is Itsuki-chan~" If Kazuya recalled correctly, Mei had texted him awhile back about something dealing with relationships. Could this have been what Mei had meant?

Kazuya checked the messages he'd received from Mei and sure enough, there was one unread message.

_"Kazuya! Guess who's in a relationship!? Me~ We just got together today, but Itsu-chan is just so adorable~ We seriously need to meet up sometime!" _

The text was a month old...how Mei managed to get someone to date him who had seen his true colors was impossible for Kazuya to understand. But then again, Mei could probably say the same about him and Eijun.

As the two couples departed from the movie theater, Mei asked one of Kazuya's most feared questions. "Kazuya...does your dad know about..._this_?" Mei had seen firsthand just how terrifying Kazuya's father became when it came to the subject of Kazuya's sexuality.

"Not yet." Kazuya replied hesitantly as he pulling Eijun away from the other couple. Kazuya just couldn't face his father in fear of what would happen to him...if not him, then Eijun. It wasn't Eijun's fault that Kazuya was gay; it was nobody's fault. He had never been into girls the way most of his guy other friends were; never feeling attracted towards the girls at his school or even sparing a second glance at the dirty magazines that the guys had snuck in from God knows where.

All he really cared about was being with Eijun and making him happy in a way that he couldn't be.

* * *

><p>"Do you want dinner or anything?" Kazuya asked as he fished around for his wallet. Eijun rubbed his eyes in an attempt to stay awake. While it wasn't <em>that <em>dark outside_, _it was still pretty close to the time where Eijun would usually be in bed. "No...I just want to go back. I'm tired..." Eijun yawned, hardly able to keep his eyes open as he walked alongside Kazuya.

The catcher stopped, nearly causing Eijun to run into him. "Eijun, do you want me to carry you?" Eijun was about to protest that he was fine and didn't need to be carried, but when Kazuya hoisted him up onto his back, Eijun found it much harder to stay awake.

Kazuya walked along the Tokyo streets slowly, allowing Eijun to fall asleep on his back. Eijun was the sun that brightened up his life with every little thing he did when all the clouds had darkened it.

Seido's campus wasn't quite empty; a few of the baseball team members were still around, either putting away equipment or walking back to their homes in the nearby area. Noting that their captain had just returned, they greeted him and wished him a good night before restoring back to their original activities.

Eijun had long since fallen asleep; light snores coming from his nose, drool dripping out from the corner of his mouth onto the front of Kazuya's shirt. While it was disgusting, Kazuya wasn't going to force Eijun to wake up and walk back to the dorm. Eijun had been the one to ask him on the date, so it only seemed natural to carry him back when he'd fallen asleep.

Knocking on the door to the dorm that Eijun shared with Kuramochi, Kazuya tapped his foot in annoyance when it didn't open. It could only mean one thing... Kuramochi was probably out with Ryousuke somewhere.

Eijun probably hadn't brought the key to his dorm with him - probably expecting Kuramochi to be there when he returned - and Kazuya really didn't feel like searching the pitcher to see if he had brought it along. Kazuya wasn't going to risk Eijun waking up, only to find himself being thoroughly searched.

Kazuya still had his dorm room key, just in case of any real emergency. Kazuya cautiously walked up the stairs towards his dorm, careful not to wake or, worst case scenario, drop Eijun in the process.

Taking the key out of the pocket of his jeans, Kazuya unlocked the door, stepping inside of his vacant room. It had been awhile since he'd last been in here; everything looked the same as when he'd last been in here. Since Kazuya hardly stayed in his room anymore, everyone had taken to hanging out in Kuramochi's room, much to the shortstops displeasure.

Setting Eijun down on the bed, Kazuya smiled as he brushed a bit of Eijun's hair out of his face. Taking off the white hat Eijun had on, Kazuya had almost missed the writing on the inside. Reading the little sayings on the inside of the hat as he shut the door, Kazuya couldn't help but smile to himself; Eijun had some truly amazing friends.

As he set the hat down on the desk, the sound of muffled buzzing caught his attention. Eijun's phone was ringing. Kazuya paused, pondering over if he should answer the call; for one, it was _Eijun's_ phone, not his, but...it could also be an important phone call from Eijun's family or friends.

Taking the phone from Eijun's pocket carefully, Kazuya answered it without hesitation. "Hello, Kazuya speaking, how may I help you?" Kazuya tried to sound as professional as he could, hoping whoever was on the other end of the line wouldn't question why he was answering.

_**"Ah Miyuki-kun, it's nice to hear from you again."** _The voice on the other end belonged to Eijun's mother, she sounded a bit uneasy. Something must have come up for her to call this late at night. Kazuya gulped, honestly wishing he'd never picked up the phone. "Same goes for you, Sawamura-san. Eijun's already asleep, but I can wake him up for you if you'd like."

There were loud voices in the background - mostly shouts about who was on the phone - but Kazuya swore he'd heard his name being yelled out. "_**You don't have to wake him, dear. Can you just tell Eijun that the middle school that he went to is going to be demolished in just a few days?"**_

Kazuya had little idea what that meant; Eijun often talked about his time at middle school with pride, but he'd never heard Eijun say anything about it getting demolished. "Sure thing, Sawamura-san."

Switching the phone off, Kazuya placed it down next to Eijun's hat on the desk. Eijun was still asleep, having heard nothing of the phone call that had just happened. The bed creaked a little under Kazuya's weight as he sat down next to Eijun, stroking the pitchers cheek lightly with his fingers, noting how soft Eijun's skin was.

Too tired to change into his sleep wear, Kazuya pulled off his jeans, tossing them aside as he curled up next to Eijun, wrapping his arms around the pitchers waist tightly. Eijun was Kazuya's favorite thing to hold onto at night; the nightmares and the memories were blocked out by the pitchers snoring; Kazuya often found himself dreaming of things relating to Eijun.

* * *

><p>"Miyuki! Help me with my batting, please?" Kazuya thought that he was immune to Eijun's puppy dog eyes, but yet he slowly found himself falling for them once again. With a defeated sigh, Kazuya walked over towards the pitcher who was holding his bat in his left hand, a grin forming on his face.<p>

"Alright, let's start with your stance." Eijun took up his batting position, allowing Kazuya to correct his stance when needed. "Alright, move your leg right here." Kazuya explained, moving Eijun's leg a bit further out. Eijun may be a great bunter, but his batting was still rather poor.

"Stop touching my ass..." Eijun hissed, noticing where the catchers hands had gone up too. Kazuya smirked at him, retracting his hands before Eijun could make use out of the metal bat in his hands.

"Why are you getting so work up? You know that I'm not going to hurt you, right?" Kazuya asked Eijun as he corrected the pitchers hold on the bat. It's not like they haven't had physical contact with own another in public, but Eijun was extremely aggressive about being touched anywhere besides his upper body.

"I know that..." Eijun mumbled, gripping the bat tighter in his hands as he tried to ignore the catcher. It wasn't like he hated being near Kazuya; on the contrary, he was always looking forward to spending quality time with the catcher, it was just the amount of physical contact between the two of them - whether it was alone in the privacy of their own room or out in publics eyes - left an uncanny feeling in the deepest pits of his stomach.

"Hahaha, I'm not like Miyauchi-san, Eijun. I'm not gonna grab your balls. But, I'm not like Chris-senpai either; I like to tease you when your all tense, because that's how I know you'll slowly start to relax."

With a quick pat to Eijun's behind once more, Kazuya shifted the pitchers body a bit more to the left, correcting Eijun's stance and hold on the bat once more. Pulling an empty baseball crate up, taking a seat on it, twirling the baseball on his index finger as he got ready to throw it. "Alright, eyes on the ball." Kazuya prompted him, tossing the ball towards the pitcher who eyed it carefully as it flew towards him.

Taking a step forward, gripping the bat tightly, Eijun slowly allowed his body to move along with the bat as he swung to hit the ball coming towards him. It was a miss, but Eijun wasn't going to get discouraged over it. Kazuya had once told him that it'd take a bit of time for him to be able to actually hit it properly.

Eijun grinned at Kazuya, a sign that it was alright to keep continuing.

Practice makes permanent to them.

* * *

><p>"Miyuki! Come on, we have to take a bath now or we'll stink up the room!" Eijun whined as he pulled hard on the catchers arm. Practice had been grueling; there wasn't a single player who wasn't sweating through their clothes. It didn't have to be summer for them to sweat, all it took was hours of batting, fielding, and individual practice for them to start reeking.<p>

Kazuya wasn't up for the idea of joining the others for a bath. The moment they'd lay eyes on his scars, the questions would pile up endlessly. Eijun - as far as he knew - was the only person who knew about his problem. While the ridges urges had subsided for now, the results still lingered on his skin.

"We'll bathe later." Kazuya interjected, trying to pull his arm out of the pitchers hold. Eijun's nails were digging into his skin, a little too close to the scars, making the catcher hiss slightly in pain. Eijun heard the noise, instinctively letting go of the catchers arm and mumbling a quick apology.

"Why won't you take a bath with the others?" Eijun's voice dropped down to a whisper as he sat down on the bench in the dugout. Kazuya was one of the most respected members of the team, surely no one would care that he was joining them for a bath.

"Because...I'm ashamed of these." Kazuya rolled up the sleeves of his blue compression shirt, showing off the healed scars on his wrists. Eijun took Kazuya's hand into his own, his thumb tracing over the raised scars on the catchers wrists up and down slowly.

"Don't be..."

* * *

><p>With all the nagging Eijun had done, Kazuya finally gave in to the pitchers request. There were a few of the first years changing out of their sweat drenched clothing, each glancing at one another unsure of what to say to the captain and Eijun as they walked in chatting up a storm with one another.<p>

While they had no problems with either of them - or their relationship - they found it to be a bit peculiar that they were here together. Usually, the two would bathe later on, after everyone was done using the bath. As far as they knew, Eijun **never** ventured alone into the bath without the catcher trailing along beside him.

They were a bit too curious for their own goods. "Sawamura...have you and Miyuki-senpai...ya know...?" Eijun was oblivious to their inquiry, though Kazuya caught on. The catcher chuckled to himself as he helped Eijun change out of his jersey. "Of course. Why wouldn't we?" Kazuya laughed, removing his glasses from his face, setting them down on the spare clothes he'd brought along.

Eijun had little idea what they were even talking about, deciding to just let Kazuya handle it. "Miyuki..." Eijun murmured, a blush forming on his face as he looked at the still clothed catcher. "Hmm? Oh..." Kazuya smirked, covering his eyes with his hands as Eijun pulled off his pants and boxers in one hasty movement, throwing them into the clothes basket, wrapping a towel tightly around his waist and tapping the catcher on the back, permitting Kazuya to uncover his eyes.

"Now, it's your turn~" Kazuya stated simply, lifting his arms up above his head, clueing Eijun to help him remove his jersey. Eijun scowled, but slowly unbuttoned Kazuya's jersey, removing it in one swift movement. Watching as Kazuya pulled off the blue compression shirt, Eijun unconsciously licked his dry, chapped lips a bit.

Leave it to _him_ to be granted such a smart, handsome, and talented boyfriend such as Kazuya. While he was some loudmouthed, country kid, Kazuya was the exact opposite; a malicious city boy who, when opportunity presents itself, never ceases to aggravate others with his words. But that's what Eijun liked about him; the fact that he never held back on anything.

"Stop spacing out, Eijun." Kazuya called out, waving a hand in front of his face, snapping Eijun out of his delirious state of mind. The catcher was fully undressed, towel hanging loosely off his hips. Eijun knew that he couldn't come up with any excuses as to why he had been staring at the catchers body.

"Like what you see, huh?" Kazuya teased, his hurly voice soft as he poked the pitchers cheek. Eijun knew he had no reason to get flustered up over being caught staring at Kazuya's well toned, muscular figure; Kazuya was his boyfriend.

"Come on, we'd better go join everyone before they become suspicious and think that we're up to no good in here." With a wink, Kazuya grasped the pitchers hand in his own, dragging him towards the bath.

The stares from the first years in the bath caused Kazuya to feel extremely self conscious about himself; did they see? Do they know? Did Eijun tell them?

"Miyuki-senpai, it's a surprise to see you and Sawamura here. Usually, you two bathe last."

With a relieved sigh, Kazuya flashed them his normal grin, pulling Eijun towards the tub.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

><p><strong>And that concludes chapter 9~ <strong>

**Next chapter _may_ be going into some rather "_touchy_" areas: _Blood, depression, injuries, feels, tears, fighting, manga spoilers_...I'm a bit undecided. **

**So...I guess you'd better enjoy the fluffy Miyusawa action while it lasts. ^^' **


	10. Chapter 10: Reminisce

**Hiya, everyone~ ^-^**

** I'm reaaallly sorry that this chapter took forever to come up, but I had family issues come up and a bunch of other bullshit. . **

**To make it up to you for not updating in about a month, this is a long ass chapter. (11,125 words, wow.)**

**I couldn't decide on whether I wanted some super duper ugly ass feels or a glimpse into Kazuya's past, so I chose the later. :P**

**Oooooh, thank you to all the people who've reviewed, followed, and faved~ :D **

**This is a flashback chapter and I was soooo tempted to name this _"A Moment in The Life Of Kazuya"_ xD **

**But I didn't...**

**Anywho, enjoy~ and remember to read, review, fave, and follow~ **

* * *

><p><span><strong>Chapter 10: Reminisce<strong>

* * *

><p>Kazuya woke up with a bolt, clutching the front side of the sweat drenched shirt he that stuck to his body like an extra skin. Sweat dripped down his face, trailing down his chin, and then dropping down on the top of his hand that tightly clenched on to the blanket like a lifeline. The nightmare he had awoken from had been far too realistic for his liking, making it seem like it all had actually happened...that he and Eijun had been split apart by his cruel father.<p>

Turning his blurry, tired gaze down towards the snoring brunet asleep beside him, Kazuya let out a low sigh of relief. Everything was alright; Eijun was still here, sleeping soundly right beside him. Running his fingers through his messy light brown hair, Kazuya tried to think of a remedy to help him fall back into the blissful slumber that he needed. Gazing over at the clock that sat on the desk, Kazuya squinted his eyes, somewhat able to make out the neon red numbers on it: 3:30 AM. With a low groan, Kazuya allowed his body to fall backwards on to the warm sheets.

Getting sleep was tough for him; the nightmares, the flashbacks, and the taunting voices from deep inside of his memory drove him crazy, keeping him up for hours at a time. Kazuya folded his arms behind his head, staring up at the empty bunk above his own, blearily. Kazuya had almost mistake the tiny whimper for a wild animal outside of the dorms making noise, but it wasn't. The sound was far too familiar to have been that of a wild animal scurrying around in the darkness of the early morning hours.

"Hnngg...no..." Eijun whimpered softly in his sleep, tears starting to pour out of his closed eyes, wetting his cheeks as they rolled down them, making splotches of all sizes on the bed sheets.

"No...no, stop!" Eijun cried out in his sleep, fighting off something that only he could see. Eijun's body had, somehow, become tangled up in the white blanket, causing him to thrash around violently in his sleep as he tried to fend off something that only he could see. Kazuya gently shook the pitcher's shoulders, trying to wake him up from the nightmare he was having. Eijun would have bad dreams, yes, but they'd never gotten _that_ bad before. Kazuya continued to shake the pitcher as gently as he could without hurting the pitcher. Teary, golden eyes met with his own soft, light brown ones.

"Hi there," Kazuya said softly, watching how Eijun sat up to rub his eyes of sleep and salty tears. Turning his attention towards the catcher sitting up beside him, Eijun yawned as he replied back with,"Mornin', Miyuki." Kazuya chuckled as he smoothed down the pitchers wild, brown locks. Eijun was surprisingly quiet; that was never a good sign. Kazuya wrapped an arm around the pitchers body and pulled him closer towards him, burrowing his face in the soft, dark hair.

"Bad dream?" Kazuya asked as he nuzzled the pitcher's neck, affectionately. Eijun sighed as he rested his own head on the catchers. Eijun knew he couldn't lie to Kazuya; the catcher worried about him more than he needed too. With a quick nod of his head, Eijun mumbled a soft,"Yeah..." as his gaze lingered over at the clock on the desk.

"What about you? You're up pretty early, Miyuki." Eijun pondered as he turned back to look at the catcher, who still had his head resting in the crook of his neck. Kazuya's warmth spread throughout his body, warming him up from every inch and part; it was as if Kazuya was his own personal body heater. Kazuya sighed softly as he removed his head from Eijun's neck. With a forced, yet tired, smile on his face, Kazuya looked into his eyes with a serious look, leading Eijun to believe the catcher was going to tell him what he was doing up at this hour.

"Go get me some water."

Eijun was taken aback by the catchers demand, but he wasn't going to go against his boyfriend. Kazuya did _far_ than enough work when it came to him; Eijun wasn't going to go against his captain, fearing he'd be in trouble if he didn't give in.

"Okay, I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere!" Eijun ordered as he scurried over the catchers long, outstretched legs and off the bunk, mumbling a,"Be back soon" as he exited the room to go on a journey to get water for Kazuya. While he was a bit weary to leave the catcher alone in the room all by himself, he didn't want to go against an order from his captain.

Kazuya let out the breath he'd been holding as soon as Eijun had stepped out of the room. Raising up the sleeves of his red and white shirt, Kazuya grimaced at the hideous scars that loitered his arms and wrists. Before Eijun had come along, cutting had been the only mechanism Kazuya used to distract himself and escape from the hardships of life. After Eijun had entered his personal life, the urges had slowly started to die off, but the atrocious scars still remained.

The urge to scratch had become much stronger ever since he'd been made captain, after Tetsuya and the other third years retired. Being captain was stressful; even though Kuramochi and Zono were there to help ease the burden of supporting the entire team off of his shoulders, he couldn't help but feel that it was still his responsibility to look out for everyone on the team, and if it meant that he would have to look out for the others before himself, then that was what he would do.

Eijun was the amazing plot twist in his dull, empty life.

* * *

><p><strong>FLASHBACK: Five Years Ago~<strong>

* * *

><p>Kazuya could remember the very day when his middle school teammates had decided that he was just too annoying and too cocky for his own good, and they had planned to teach him a lesson. They had invited him to walk home with them, saying it was to discuss baseball strategies and tactics. Kazuya had agreed, thinking they had finally gotten into the spirit of thinking about baseball on a more serious level.<p>

Kazuya had fallen directly into their trap, unable to break free from their clutches. When he had arrived at their designated meeting spot, they were waiting with wide, cruel smirks on their faces, arms crossed or hidden behind their backs, as he neared them, clueless about what they were about to do to him.

Kazuya grinned at them as he neared them, twisting his hat on the side as he stepped closer. With every step he took, they were already further ahead of him in the plan.

"Miyuki, nice of you to join us." The smirk on the biggest one's face grew larger as he took a step forward towards the small catcher, arms unfolding from his chest as he inched closer towards Kazuya. He towered over the catcher like a giant

Kazuya gulped as he noticed the dark look in the taller boys eyes, causing him to step backwards a bit. "What do you want?" Kazuya's tone was firm, yet lingering with anxiousness. He didn't want any trouble from them; maybe if he kept his guard up, there wouldn't be any difficulties.

There was a loud popping noise that rung in Kazuya's ears as the older boys fist collided with his cheek, sending the smaller boy toppling to the ground within seconds after the collision._ 'Don't cry, Kazuya. Don't cry!'_ His mind reprimanded him, but the pain that they kept inflicting on him, one after the other, made his vision blurry, not from losing his glasses, but from the hot tears that flowed freely down his bruised and scratched up face as he tried to protect himself from their attacks by curing up into the fetal position.

"He really is a little faggot, after all." With one last, harsh kick to his already sore and hideously bruised side, the bullies had had their fun, turning their backs away from their victim to start walking down the long road that lead to their homes. Kazuya's small voice croaked out in-between sobs as he struggled to sit up without the intense pain overpowering him. "Just...just you wait...one day...I'll be big enough so you can't hit me."

They had laughed it off as nothing more than a mere joke and simply continued on their way back to their homes, leaving Kazuya curled up on the hard ground, bloody and bruised, crying silently to himself as the rain started to drip down from the sky, wetting his face once more with droplets of rain instead of salty tears.

* * *

><p>Kazuya had hardly any energy to move that morning, having walked home in the rain a bloody mess. He'd been feeling feverish all morning long, but his father wasn't going to allow him to stay home from school because he wasn't feeling up too it. Unless he wanted his father to schedule an appointment to see the doctor, he was going to drag his ass school. Kazuya hated <em>anything<em> to do with doctors; they always reminded him of why his mother was no longer around.

Kazuya hadn't bothered to attend practice; he wasn't able to concentrate very well and was still awfully sore from the attacks. Coach was busy trying to sort out things dealing with a new member wanting to join the baseball team, so Kazuya would just tell him that he wasn't feeling too good and was going to go home to rest.

"Ah, Miyuki, good timing!" The coach exclaimed, skimming over piles of papers that sat on his desk in nothing but a massive heap. Kazuya blinked, unsure of why coach had said he had good timing. "We just got a new addition to the team and, since he's a pitcher, I thought that it would be good if you two got to know one another; you are the team's main catcher, after all."

Kazuya sighed as he rubbed his hot, aching head, unable to say no to the coach. A pitcher, huh? Will he be like the last one and obey every sign given; never once shaking them off? The last pitcher moved away a few weeks ago, due to his father getting a new job opportunity in another prefecture, leaving the pitcher's spot on the team vacant.

"I was actually coming to tell you that I'm just gonna head on home. I don't feel too good today." Kazuya confided, an apologetic smile forming upon his lips as he tried to ease his way out of the conversation. Coach wasn't buying his excuse at getting out of their conversation, though.

"Oh? That's too bad, Narumiya _really_ wanted to meet you, Miyuki." Coach mused as he motioned with his hand over towards the door where a lone blond stood, peering into the office nervously; his big blue eyes full of curiosity and wonder as he observed the catcher from his rooted spot in the office doorway.

This must be Narumiya.

"Come in, Narumiya. I want to introduce you two." The blond shuffled his tiny feet from the doorway, slowly making his way over towards the coach and Kazuya, hesitantly. Once they were standing only an arm's length away from one another, Kazuya resisted the urge to laugh; he was taller than the blond by a couple of inches. He had almost found it hard to believe that there could be _another_ player _smaller_ than _him_.

"Introduce yourselves." Coach ordered as he nudged the blond a bit closer to Kazuya - who was, _not-so-secretly,_ examining Narumiya with his ever observant, light brown eyes. The blond squirmed under Kazuya's intense gaze a bit embarrassed, refusing to look up meet Kazuya's eyes. Instead, Narumiya chose to direct his full attention down towards the faded out white cleats he was wearing as Kazuya finished up with his thorough examination.

Kazuya pulled on his most friendliest smile as he grabbed a hold of the blonds small, pale hand in a quick handshake, earning a small squeak from him in surprise from being touched by Kazuya. "Miyuki Kazuya, catcher!" The blond looked up at him for a slight moment before reverting his gaze back down towards his cleats.

"Narumiya Mei...pitcher." The high-pitched, squeaky voice that came from the blond's mouth reminded Kazuya of a mouse. While he found it rather amusing, he also found it rather..._cute_.

"Well, now that you two know each others names, maybe you two should get to know one another better?"

Kazuya shot a grin at the fidgeting blond, making him freeze up like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. Kazuya was determined to make at least _one person_ on the team like him, so if he had to break the blond out of his comfort zone, then he would do so.

"Narumiya, want to come over my house?"

* * *

><p>It had taken Kazuya a few weeks to get Narumiya to <em>finally<em> agree to come over; the catchers persistence finally caused the blond to give in and say yes. Kazuya's father was gonna be out of the house for the rest of the night, so Kazuya had invited Narumiya to spend the night with him at his house. Kazuya couldn't explain why, but there was a really different atmosphere when he was around Narumiya. While Kazuya usually found himself doing most of the talking - Narumiya merely nodding his head or saying simple words in response to whatever Kazuya had said - he still enjoyed the company that the blond had to offer.

Kazuya liked the company Narumiya provided; he hadn't grown up with any siblings around, so the house was rather lonesome; his father was working all the darn time and, well, not having a mother to greet him when he got home from school or baseball practice was rather lonely as well. Having someone to talk too about random things and actually listen to him was a rather nice change; it was better than the awful silence that greeted him when he got home from baseball practice, or the blaring sounds of the TV that he'd turned up on full volume to make it seem less lonesome.

When night-time fell, Kazuya pulled Narumiya into his bedroom, and made the blond get up into the bed with him as he popped in a scary movie into the DVD player and sat huddled up under the covers next to Narumiya as they tried to watch the movie without freaking out over the extremely violent scenes.

The credits had just started to roll on the screen when Kazuya had awoken, head laying on Narumiya's stomach, as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Reaching for the remote, Kazuya turned the TV off, settling back down on his comfy, human pillow as he allowed himself to drift off to sleep once more.

* * *

><p>Kazuya had grown closer to Mei over the past few months that they had gotten to know each other through baseball practice and just casual get together at one another's place. As he was putting away the last of the baseballs, the same group of bullies had approached him, vicious smirks plastered on their faces. "Hey, fag. You missed some." One of the bullies snickered as he kicked the bucket that held all the baseballs Kazuya had just finished picking up.<p>

Kazuya knew it was useless trying to fight with them, so as he bent down to pick up the stray balls that had started to roll away, a pale hand picked it up for him. Mei smiled at him as he helped Kazuya collect the stray balls. After they had finished picking up the very last ones, Mei sat down on the dirt ground beside him, gazing upwards towards the evening sky that had started to turn orange in color as the sun began to set in the horizon.

"Kazu-chan, why do you let them bully you?" Mei asked softly, his long, pale fingers gently grazing over the nasty, blackish blue bruise on the catchers right cheek. Kazuya flinched at the touch of the bruise, still finding it painful to touch, even though it had happened a week ago.

"If I don't, then they'll hurt you."

* * *

><p>If there was one team that Kazuya's just couldn't beat, it would be Marugame Senior League. The pitcher and catcher battery was unbreakable; the pitcher had put his absolute, full trust in the catcher. Chris could catch whatever wild, blazing pitch was thrown from any pitcher.<p>

As Mei and Kazuya warmed up, Kazuya could feel the gazes of Chris and the pitcher, whom he had learned was named Zaizen, as he caught Mei's fastball.

"Southpaw, huh? Wonder what this kid's made of." The pitcher commented, nudging Chris in his side with his elbow. Chris merely smiled as he strapped on his catchers gear. "Hopefully, not like you." Chris chuckled as he placed his helmet on his head.

This would be their last time trying to defeat the team that Chris was on; Chris was a third year in middle school, while Kazuya was still a second year. One last chance to prove that they were the stronger team; one last chance to prove that their practice hadn't gone to waste, but mostly, one last chance to show Chris just how much time and devotion he had put into forming the perfect battery with Mei.

Lately, Kazuya had had some issues with Mei. Mei would agree on the type of pitch that would be thrown, but instead of a fastball, he'd received a slider. When he'd question Mei about it, he'd received a shrug of the shoulders from the blond and a bored expression.

Ever since he had been granted the ace title, Mei's arrogance grew more each day. Often ignoring the signs Kazuya had specifically asked him not to brush off, and throwing something he was still improving on. While it angered Kazuya to no end, he knew that there was hardly anything he could do; if coach couldn't do anything about Mei's behavior, Kazuya wasn't so sure that he could, either.

* * *

><p>They'd lost...a bitter, angry feeling tumbled around in Kazuya's stomach as he saw the other team whooping and cheering over their win. Kazuya took off his helmet, throwing it to the ground as he stormed over towards the nonchalant blond, who was still standing on the mound. "Mei, what the hell!? I wanted a fastball to the inside corner, not a fucking slider! Why did you brush off my sign!?" Kazuya lashed out, bitterly. He hated fighting with Mei over simple things, but it was always Mei's selfishness that got to him.<p>

"I'm the _ace_, Kazuya. Aren't I _allowed_ to be selfish?" Mei asked monotonously with a slight roll of the eyes. Kazuya had just about had it with Mei and his selfishness; baseball wasn't just a sport that they played by themselves; baseball was a **_team_** sport.

"You make no sense half the time, Mei. You know that baseball's a team effort; we don't win with just a single player...it takes the _whole_ entire team to win!" Kazuya snapped, finding it hard to sustain his boiling rage from the words Mei had uttered, whether he truly meant them, Kazuya didn't care, he was still angry from their loss. It could have been a win, if it weren't for Mei's selfish pitching. All he wanted to do was bang his head into the nearest wall and see if he could erase this hateful feeling that bubbled up inside of him.

The bus ride home was full of silence; Mei was pouting and close to tears, while Kazuya huffed and turned his body away from Mei to look out the window of the bus. Everyone else was entirely flabbergasted; the two usually chatted up a storm as they discussed tactics, what they needed to work on more with Mei's pitching, and things non-related to baseball; whose house they were going to crash at that night, what they would be having for dinner, and homework. But lately, there had been tension between the two of them; the two bickered all the way back to the bus where they would curl up in their seat, refusing to acknowledge the others existence for the time being.

Hating your best friend is a very painful thing when you're both to blame for the others mistakes...

* * *

><p>During his third year in middle school, Kazuya had been sitting in his last class of the day, reading a sports magazine that he'd bought with his own allowance the night before. The snickering coming from his male classmates sitting a few seats away from his caught his attention, but he'd always preferred to just sit back and listen rather than join in their conversations.<p>

The main topic of today's discussion: sexuality.

Apparently, one of the boys had snuck in a couple of his older brother's magazines; the ones with the very scandalous looking women on the cover, clad in nothing but underwear - and sometimes nothing at all - and pulled them out from his school bag for all the boys to see. Noticing Kazuya sitting alone, they had invited him over, only to find that he wasn't at all affected by the magazines; he simply scrunched up his face in utter revolt and just walked away, leaving them dumbfounded.

Kazuya couldn't understand why girls didn't seem to appeal to him; many in his class had a crush on him and many weren't too secretive about it either. Kazuya just couldn't understand why he felt so awkward being around other guys; whether it was just walking home with Mei or accidentally bumping into a fellow male classmate in the hallway during class transitions, the hot, burning feeling just erupted inside of him, just like a volcano getting to erupt and spew lava everywhere.

What was it exactly? Admiration? No, boys his age didn't seem to think about other boys like that. Maybe...it was something else?

As he sat at the rectangular dinner table with his father, he'd asked a simple question, trying not to sound suspicious at all. "Hey Dad, what would you do if you had a gay son?" Kazuya cast his gaze downwards, staring at his distorted reflection in the glass of water that was sitting in front of him. Kazuya's father had nearly ripped the newspaper that he'd been reading in half, giving Kazuya a cold, stern stare. "Listen up, Kazuya. No son of mine will ever be gay. It's a sin. Do you want to go to hell? Answer me, Kazuya!" His father's hateful voice boomed across the room, causing Kazuya to shrink further down into his chair. He felt trapped being here; there was no support from his father. He would just have to keep his sexuality a secret.

"No, sir..."

After finishing up dinner in silence, Kazuya asked his father if he could go over Mei's house. His father had agreed, assuming that Mei was a girl he knew. Kazuya walked the long distance that separated his apartment complex from Mei's house, lost in thought about how he should tell his best friend that he was gay._ 'Calm down, Kazuya. Mei's your best friend, he won't be disgusted by you...at least, I hope he won't.'_

Upon arriving at the white, two-story house, Kazuya didn't bother knocking on the door, he simply just followed the paved trail that lead to the backyard. Kazuya spotted the blond pitcher throwing a few pitches into the baseball net. Mei turned his head at the sound of Kazuya stepping on the crunchy leaves, and waved, once he saw that it was just Kazuya. "Hey Kazuya, what brings you out here?" Mei asked with a wide smile, quickly swiping away the beads of sweat that had formed on his brow with his arm.

Kazuya shrugged, leaning against the fence a bit. "Um...I need to tell you something." Mei's grin fell into a worried frown at the seriousness of Kazuya's tone. Tossing the ball over his shoulder, Mei trudged over to where Kazuya was standing by the wooden fence. "So...what's wrong?" Kazuya looked down at his dirty sneakers, refusing to make eye contact with the blond. "If...If I told you that I was gay, how would you react?" There wasn't any laughter or even the slightest peep from the blond.

After a moment of utter silence, Mei finally spoke up. "Personally, I'd be alright with it. You're still Kazuya; my catcher, and my best friend. Even if you're gay, then so what? You're still my favorite catcher." The goofy smile on Mei's face was contagious; Kazuya felt himself start to smile as well. He had finally found the support that he had needed. As the two slumped to the hard ground, watching as the stars came out in the darkening sky, Mei piped a question,"Kazuya, will you go to Inashiro with me?" Kazuya hadn't thought about high school that much, but he had decided when he was still a first year where he wanted to go. Though, that had been two years ago since she had tried to scout him...maybe he didn't want to go there anymore? Inashiro had everything; a great education status, a great baseball team, and had been to Koshien many times.

"I'll...think about it, Mei."

* * *

><p>March was slowly creeping up on them; it was early the end of February, and middle school would be ending for Kazuya in just a matter of weeks. Mei had invited him on an outing for that Saturday in the park, saying to look his absolute best, but nothing more. Whatever Mei wanted, he had seemed to be implying that he wanted to discuss Kazuya's choice of high school. Kazuya had promised Mei that he'd give him his final decision once he had made up his mind.<p>

Kazuya had arrived at the park a few minutes late, regretting having slept in a few hours longer than he was supposed to. Upon arrival at the meeting spot on the stairs, Kazuya noticed that they had company. Mei hadn't _specifically_ said anything about it being just the two of them...though, he also hadn't said that they would be joined by any others.

"Well, well..." Kazuya murmured, putting names to the faces of the guys that overlooked him from their spots on the stairs. They weren't just regular guys; on the contrary, these guys were all-star players, just like him and Mei. Some they had played before; some they hadn't, but that didn't mean Mei didn't know about them. Mei and Kazuya used to sneak off during practice to go see another school's game; whether it was just a practice or an official match, they were both blown away by the abilities of each teams star players. If his gut feeling was right, then this meeting was about Mei wanting him to join him at Inashiro, with the rest of the all-stars that he'd recruited.

"What's with the gathering of the all-stars?" Kazuya commented, directing his gaze from each one as he thought of their name and the school they attended. The first one was the dark-skinned, foreign guy with the slicked back, black hair, wearing a light blue button up shirt; a black undershirt peeking out from underneath it. "Carlos from Jonan Senior League." They hadn't played against Carlos' school, but Mei had wanted to watch the game anyways, even though the both of them were sick as dogs. The two had bundled up in their warmest, thickest clothes and had gone to watch the game together. Huddled up closely on the bleachers that over looked the baseball field, the two had been impressed by Carlos' cheetah-like speed. He still remembered how their jaws dropped and eyes widened as they watched him sprint from home base to second base with ease.

The next one was a surprisingly familiar face from his first year of middle school. He knew that bangs-cover-the-left-eye hairstyle and cold expression anywhere. "Shirakawa from Marugame Senior League." They'd played against Marugame multiple times; but the team had Chris on it at the time. Chris had been the star player everyone had come to see and wanted to scout to be the catcher for their high school baseball team. Though, Shirakawa was a perfectionist seeking certainty.

The next two weren't all too familiar, but they had played before once or twice. One wore a brown jacket over a dark blue t-shirt, and had the strangest looking side burns on his face. The other, had a buzz cut hairstyle, wearing a dark gray t-shirt, with an even lighter gray, long-sleeved shirt underneath it, and a wide smirk, showing off his teeth. "Yamaoka and Yabe from Takahira Senior League." He couldn't quite recall what positions they played, having stayed home sick the day that the team had played, only having watched it from the DVD Mei had loaned him.

Looking up at the grinning blond that sat on the concrete stairs in a black and red jacket, Kazuya had a hunch that his gut feeling was right. "Did you call them all here, Mei?" Mei's grin grew wider, confirming Kazuya's question.

"Yeah. And you, Kazuya. If you come with me, I can form my ultimate team." Mei chirped, never taking his eyes off the brunet standing in front of him. Kazuya could feel the sweat start to trickle down his cheek as he let out a nervous laugh. _'Oh shit...I should have told him earlier...this is going to ruin our friendship.' _Kazuya had rehearsed different ways he was going to tell Mei, but they had all seemed a bit too much; either too sugarcoated or too rude. Mei was his best friend; his only friend, really. The one who could embarrass him by simply blurting out his secret in front of the all-stars. As Kazuya thought over the way he was going to tell Mei, Shirakawa's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"I don't really care if you're not the catcher. But, Narumiya wants _you_." Of course Mei wanted _him_. They had been inseparable the three years that they'd been friends. Mei was his pitcher, and he was Mei's catcher. That was how their battery worked.

"Inashiro invited you, too. Right, Kazuya? So, why don't we make the ultimate team together? If we all get on the same team, we could make it to Koshien." Leave it to Mei to make him feel bad. When he had gotten the invitation in the mail, he had shown it to Mei, who had also been invited. The blond was rather gleeful about the letter, saying they'd still have their perfect battery.

"Inashiro's coach has a lot of experience under his belt, and they have the best equipment in Tokyo. It's a great environment, too." Carlos added in. Shirakawa eyed Kazuya suspiciously, sensing that he was hiding something from them. "Not to mention, you won't have to play against Narumiya. You're in, too. Right, Miyuki Kazuya?"

As Kazuya stood there, he knew that the one crucial detail he'd kept a secret, other than his sexuality, of course, was going to have to be spilled one way or another. Rubbing the back of his neck, turning his attention away from the group, Kazuya finally found his voice. "I'm sorry, but I already got an invite from Seido a while ago. I can't join you guys."

The first to speak up in shock was Yabe. "Huh? Are you being serious right now?" As the group, besides Mei, who was still thinking over Kazuya's answer, gave him outraged looks, Kazuya could only imagine their faces if he had told them his other secret. Mei had mumbled something like,"Seido, huh?" as he slowly stood up. "They've only gone to Koshien once since their old coach quit. Compared to what coach Kunitomo has achieved, coach Kataoka is just _way_ too green."

Kazuya shrugged, still unable to look Mei in the eye as he scratched at his neck. "Well, it's not really about that. Inashiro's a team with a bunch of all-stars like you guys, right? So...I want to face you as an opponent." Kazuya explained, looking directly into Mei's eyes. His response shocked the others, making their eyes widen and mouths go agape. Kazuya had expected Mei to oppose of his decision of going to Seido, but, to his surprise, Mei merely smirked at him. "Kazuya, I'm gonna ask you one last time."

Kazuya shook his head. "Sorry. No."

* * *

><p>Kazuya remembered how his first day at Seido was. He'd be cursed with an overweight, rude, and arrogant roommate named Azuma. The day he arrived at the dorm, he partially regretted not staying home; sure, it was quiet and lonesome, but at least his father worked late. Azuma berated him endlessly, making him run out in the dead of night to go get food or drink for him.<p>

On his first day, he was late; Azuma hadn't bothered to wake him up. Running around the grounds with another player named Kuramochi served as enough embarrassment to them both when Kazuya had inadvertently tripped over a rock, pulling Kuramochi down as well. Kazuya couldn't hide the mortification when he'd landed on top of a seething, red-faced Kuramochi, causing the rest of the team to laugh at them.

Whenever he tried to talk to Chris, the catcher refused to look him in the eye, or even make any sort of small talk with him. Kazuya persisted, which caused Chris to become much more aggravated with him. When he had first learned of Chris' injury, part of him died inside. The one person he had admired the most no longer shone on the field. Chris had been taken off the first string, unable to take part in baseball any longer due to his injury making him unable to throw the ball. Chris started to leave practice early to go to physical therapy, trying to get his shoulder back into shape.

Taking Chris spot was what he'd dreaded, but with Chris gone for the rest of the season, the first string was down a catcher who was able to fill in the shoes that Chris had left. The only suitable pick was Kazuya. Being the only other freshman on the team - besides Kuramochi - was rather difficult. The senpai's weren't mean, but they were rather bossy. Kuramochi seemed to hate his guts, always scowling and huffing when Kazuya had to sit next to him on the bus or in the cafeteria. It wasn't like he had wanted to sit next to Kuramochi; on the contrary, the catcher would've preferred to sit next to Chris. But since Chris was no longer on the first-string, he'd have to try to make Kuramochi like him.

Kazuya plunked his tray down on the table next to Kawakami, flashing him his brightest, friendliest smile. "Hey Nori, mind if I sit here?" Kawakami broke out in a cold sweat, unused to the catcher being so friendly. Scooting his chair bit further from the catcher, Kawakami had no courage to even muster up a smile of his own.

* * *

><p>Kazuya couldn't stand the loneliness. He'd been at Seido for three weeks and still hadn't made any new friends. The only friend he had was the razor; the razor that created such ugly marks on his beautiful skin. The only thing that took away the pain for such a short awhile. He had gotten used to wearing long-sleeved shirts to cover up the scars. Kazuya had never let his scars heal up; he always scratched at the annoying itch or gave into the urge to cut with either the razor or the blade to the small, green handheld pencil-sharpener he owned.<p>

Kazuya had been siting in art class - his worst subject - when the teacher had assigned the project. "Draw a picture of a friend." Kazuya accidentally dropped the pencil he had been holding, a bit shocked the teacher had even said those words. A friend? Where the hell was he going to find one of those? A slight tap on his shoulder broke him out of his thoughts, turning his head to see who it was, Kazuya's went went agape for a slight second. "Hey...you dropped this." Kuramochi muttered, holding the pencil out for the catcher to take.

Kazuya's eyes wandered from the shortstop's outstretched hand with the pencil in it, to his face to see if he could read the emotions in the shortstop's eyes. Kuramochi was...different. Kuramochi had pretty rough features, and talked rather funny at times, but Kazuya was determined to befriend Kuramochi, even if it was just for this project.

"Thank you..." Kazuya murmured, taking his pencil back from the shortstop's grasp. "So, about that project...do you...maybe...want to work together?" Kuramochi mumbled, turning his gaze away from the catcher to stare out the window. Kazuya almost didn't believe it until the shortstop pulled up an empty chair next to his desk. "I'm a terrible artist, Kuramochi." Kuramochi shrugged, pulling out a piece of plain white paper from his bag. "However bad you may be at art, just know that I'm probably worse. I can't even draw stick figures correctly..." Holding back an amused chuckle, Kazuya took out his own paper to sketch the shortstop's features. This wasn't going to be a masterpiece, but at least he'd found someone to talk to.

Kuramochi hadn't lied when he said he was worse than Kazuya when it came to drawing. The proportions of Kazuya's features were all wrong; one eye was bigger than the other; his bangs were far too short and only half drawn. At least his glasses looked somewhat decent enough, unlike the rest of Kuramochi's drawing. While Kazuya had the right proportions for Kuramochi's face down, he just couldn't draw the shortstop's spiked up hairstyle worth life.

As embarrassing as it was to have to turn in their drawings to the teacher - who looked extremely baffled at their pictures - they were only growing closer to one another. As the two walked down the hallway, Kuramochi would pop a question now and then, receiving a short reply from the catcher. "So...do you like anyone?" Kazuya shook his head. While there were guys at Seido that he thought were nice looking, he couldn't say they were his type.

"Uh...no. I'm not really into girls..." Kuramochi didn't seem phased by his answer. Receiving a simple nod from the shortstop, Kazuya decided to ask Kuramochi the same question. "Do _you_ like anyone?" The shortstop's face turned slightly red as he tried to keep his answer was simple as possible. "Ryou-san..." Kominato Ryousuke, huh? The short, pinked haired second baseman, who, at first glance, seemed harmless, but had a very sharp tongue hidden behind his gentle-looking features.

"Have you told him yet?" The shortstop shook his head, too embarrassed to answer the question. While Kuramochi seemed fearless in every aspect, he was actually quite shy when it came to talking to Ryousuke outside of baseball.

"So, when are you gonna find someone?" it was Kazuya's turn to shrug. Even if he did fall in love, there was that looming chance that his father would find out about it, and would probably disown him if he found out that Kazuya had zero interest in girls. While there were girls who'd thought that he was cute and had asked him out, he would always turned them down. It didn't matter how beautiful she was, or how great her personality was, he just never found himself attracted to them. However, when he was around other guys, the weird feelings would bubble up inside of his chest, making it difficult to breath.

Would he ever find somebody who he could truly love?

* * *

><p>When the loudmouthed country kid showed up from out of the blue, Kazuya had felt something spark up inside of him.<p>

"He's gonna play pro ball with a body like _that_? Impossible!"

Looking up from where he was sitting, his eyes scanned across the field, landing a tanned skin boy with a mop of dark brown hair and fierce golden eyes, wear a yellow sweatshirt, jeans, and sneakers that had seen better days. He was standing next to Takashima - who had probably scouted him - hands cupped around his mouth. What was he going to do?

"Look at his belly! He looks like an old man!" The boy proceeded to pat his stomach, imitating how Azuma was clearly overweight, while Takashima tried to stop whatever catastrophe he was starting. "I bet he's at least forty years old! There's no way he's in high school!"

Kazuya blinked in shock, his mouth dropping open a bit. Did some loudmouth kid _really_ just insult Azuma? Ever since he had come to Seido, he'd never heard _anyone_ insult Azuma, ever...not unless they wanted a pounding. Oh, that poor kid was in for it now. Out off all the players he had to mess with, it just _had_ to be Azuma. Either the guy had balls made of steels, or he was just plain stupid. Kazuya held back the snickers as he watched the kid make fun of Azuma some more, until Takashima had proposed that the two solve their differences out on the filed.

Spinning the baseball on his finger, Kazuya couldn't hold back his enthusiasm any longer. "This sounds like fun~ Rei-chan, can I catch his pitch?" He asked, drawing everyone's attention away from the two and over towards him. Azuma glared over at him, shouting,"Miyuki, you're only a first year. Don't get so cocky!" Kazuya couldn't deny it and simply laughed it off. "Well, excuse me, but, Azuma-san, you've been on a high horse lately. You should play with us kids and go back to basics."

That seemed to have struck one of Azuma's nerves. "Who's on a high horse!?" That glare and tone from Azuma could only mean one thing; Kazuya definitely wasn't going to be sleeping in the dorm tonight. That didn't matter, he could always just sleepover in either Kuramochi or Zono's rooms.

Standing up from off the hard ground, Kazuya begun to dust the dirt from off of his behind. A few of the other first years looked at him nervously. "Kazuya, be careful what you say!" Another one added in,"He's gonna jump you!" Kazuya didn't care, the golden eyes from the boy standing across from him were just so...entrancing. Kazuya had to admit to himself, the kid was pretty cute.

Takashima sent the boy away to the locker room to go get changed into a spare uniform, ignoring his loud protests. As Kazuya strapped on his leg guards, Takashima approached him, looking out at the field where Azuma was waiting for the pitcher. "Miyuki-kun, I'm glad you volunteered." Kazuya looked up at her, a bit perplexed by her saying. "His pitches are a bit peculiar." Cocking his head to the side, Kazuya raised a brow. "Eh?" He looked like any other pitcher he had caught for. Maybe a bit younger and naïve, but he was still unsure of why she would say something like that.

With a smile on her lips, Takashima looked out towards the field where the pitcher - who had just finished up changing not too long ago - was stretching. "He himself doesn't even know what he has. Think you can draw out his _full_ potential?" Could he draw out the young pitcher's full potential? Of course he could, he wasn't on the first-string just because they were down a catcher. With a wide grin, Kazuya looked up at Takashima, ready to start when he could. "Wow, big praise. You must have high hopes for this kid."

Kazuya let his eyes wander over the pitchers body as he stretched, licking his dry lips as he thoroughly examined him from afar. The pitcher was built fairly well for his age, wasn't bad-looking, and had a pretty nice ass that the tight, white pants defined all _too_ well. "Rei-chan, whats his name again?" Kazuya asked as he tried to pry his eyes off of the stretching pitcher. Takashima merely smiled at him, shaking her head slightly. "If you want to know so badly, go ask him yourself."

* * *

><p>Kazuya had been told by Takashima that he had to warm the pitcher up so he wouldn't feel so stiff. That meant he'd have to go over there and communicate with the boy. Taking in a deep breath, Kazuya found himself slowly edging forwards towards the nervous pitcher. The boy was still stretching his left arm; Kazuya merely presumed to himself that the kid was a southpaw, since he'd seen Mei stretch nearly the same way when they were in middle school. Leave it to him to get stuck catching for yet another southpaw.<p>

It seemed like the southpaw hadn't noticed Kazuya's arrival, so the catcher decided to have some fun. With a smirk on his face, Kazuya inched closer towards the southpaw's ear and with his most deepest, huskiest voice he could muster up, he whispered,"Are you ready, kid?" a high-pitched scream came from the southpaw's mouth as he stumbled over his feet, nearly falling down in the process. Knowing Takashima would indeed get on his case if he let anything happen the southpaw, Kazuya instinctively grabbed a hold of one of the pitcher's hands before he fell. "Woah, woah, easy there~" steadying the southpaw on his feet, Kazuya could only smile at the blush that spread from the pitcher's tanned cheeks up to his ears. Adorable was probably the word he was looking for.

"Um...thank you, uh..." the southpaw began, unsure of how to finish his sentence off, due to forgetting the catcher's name so quickly. Kazuya grinned as he patted the pitcher's shoulder. "Miyuki, Miyuki Kazuya~"

Kazuya had regretted not asking the pitcher his name. Oh well, he'd have to ask later.

"Come on, we have to get your arm warmed up~"

* * *

><p>Kazuya noticed that there something was off about the pitcher. While he was indeed certain that he hadn't threw the ball <em>that<em> hard, the pitcher still let out a small whine. "Ow." the southpaw stared at the ball in his black glove with a surprised look on his face. Kazuya raised a brow as he looked at the southpaw standing across from him. "Wait, is this your first time with the hardball?" the southpaw blinked a bit, taking the ball out of his mitt to examine it. Kazuya could only come to the conclusion that the pitcher hadn't the least bit idea about the difference between a rubber-ball and a hardball.

"Hey kid," Azuma started, impatiently tapping his metal bat against his shoulder. The southpaw turned his head to look over at Azuma, a bit startled that Azuma was addressing him. "If you're gonna apologize, you better do it now. Once you get up to the mound, there's no place for you to run." Azuma was trying to intimidate the poor kid with his words.

The southpaw didn't seem to be a coward, though. "Who do you think you are anyway? You're the one who'll be begging to run way." Kazuya felt a smirk form on his lips. Leave it to the southpaw brat to stand up to Azuma. The southpaw raised up the ball that was held in between the pitcher's thumb, pointer and middle fingers. "In fact...no hard feelings even if I happen to hit you!" the southpaw bellowed the last part, causing it to echo throughout the field. Azuma broke out in a cold sweat, taking a step back from the crazed pitcher.

Kazuya couldn't help but laugh at the pitcher's statement. Clutching his sides, Kazuya found it difficult to stop laughing. "Oh, man! This guy's hilarious!" Azuma didn't seem to think that it was funny, though. "Hey, Miyuki! Nothing's funny here! You wanna get hurt!?" Kazuya managed to calm down, but a few snickers still slipped out. "Oh, I'm sorry."

* * *

><p>The southpaw had walked up to the mound, probably feeling nervous with all the members of the baseball team gathered around to watch the match. Kazuya could recognize a few of his first-string teammates. Tetsuya, holding his helmet on the outside and Ryousuke, who was holding his tiny one with a single hand on the inside. Tanba, Masuko, and Kuramochi weren't too far away. Everyone was anxiously awaiting to see what would happen next.<p>

Azuma stomped on the ground twice, glaring ferociously up at the pitcher on the mound. The southpaw looked past the monster hitter to see the catcher grinning at him from his crouched position. Kazuya pulled down the mask to cover his face, flashing the pitcher a smirk. Kazuya spread out his arms, before punching his fist into his mitt, signalling the southpaw that he could throw whatever pitch he wanted, as he positioned the mitt, ready to catch whatever the pitcher threw.

The first pitch the southpaw had thrown, Azuma hadn't even bothered to swing. "Hahaha, you're so scared that your arm's not swinging through. If you're so afraid to pitch, just say so!" Kazuya was certain that wasn't the case. If the kid was indeed scared, he wouldn't have even bothered to get up on the mound. _'That's not it. He changed his aim the moment he let go.' _Kazuya stood up, removing his face guard as he called for a time out. He hand't even waited for Azuma's reply as he took off in a sprint towards the mound. "What? If you needed a plan, you should've said something before we started!"

Covering his mouth with his glove, Kazuya questioned the southpaw about the pitch he had just thrown. "You threw that one into the ground on purpose. Why?" the southpaw finished wiping his face off, a more serious look now etched out on his face. "I felt like he would've hit if I threw it there." Kazuya was taken aback by the kid's sharp answer. A smirk soon formed as he eyed the shorter pitcher in front of him carefully. "Interesting~ Let me get this straight, you'd rather throw a ball than have him hit it?" Embarrassed, the pitcher retorted with,"You got a problem?"

"Hahahaha, you're absolutely right!" Leaning his face closer towards the pitcher's, Kazuya decided to let the pitcher in on a secret. "You see, that was actually Azuma-san's favorite location." Fighting back fits of laughter after seeing the pitcher's horrified reaction, Kazuya patted the southpaw's left arm, gently. "You were so stiff, so I thought you'd loosen up if you got obliterated once. If you had thrown there, he definitely would've hit it."

The southpaw paled over, nerves getting the best of him as he tried to think of a logical answer. "I like you, kid. Let's slay that monster together from here on out." Kazuya explained with a wink as he jabbed his thumb over his shoulder over in the direction of where Azuma was standing. The southpaw didn't seem to want to cooperate with him. "Together? Yeah, right! I bet you're on his side!" Placing a hand on the pitcher's left shoulder, Kazuya merely smiled at him. "Learn to accept the good will of others." The southpaw pulled away from Kazuya in disbelief. "Shut up! Don't touch me!"

Kazuya ignored the pitcher, instead, throwing an arm around his shoulders and pulling him in, closer towards his own body. "Anyway, what can you throw?" The pitcher stopped squirming, casting the catcher a questionable look. "Huh? I pitch fastballs for life!" Oh great, he'd heard that from a certain blond many times before. This shouldn't be too hard at all, considering the fact that he'd trained with a southpaw during his middle school years. "Seriously? This is great! I'm even more motivated now, hahahaha!"

"Damn it! You're making fun of me!" Kazuya was going to have some fun with this battle. "Just leave it to me~ I know his batting habits well." the southpaw squirmed once more in his grip, trying to break free from the catcher. "It's got nothing to do with you!" the pitcher grabbed a hold of his arm, trying to make it budge from his shoulders. "This is between _me_ and _him_!" Kazuya tightened his hold around the pitcher's shoulders. "What? Is that how you see it? Then...do you plan to play baseball by yourself?" Kazuya whispered into the pitcher's ear. The pitcher seemed to rethink what he'd just said as he thought back to what he'd said to Azuma. "I don't know what kind of baseball you've been playing, but the best pitches are works of art produced by the pitcher and the catcher working as one."

"Works of art?" Pulling his arm off from around the pitcher's shoulders, Kazuya placed a hand on the pitcher's left shoulder once more. "I'll draw out your full potential. You just need to trust my mitt and throw your best pitches. It's that simple. We'll be great partners." Kazuya tapped the pitcher's chest with his glove, ready to begin the long awaited battle. "It's nice to meet you, _partner_~"

"O-Okay..."

"Thanks for waiting~" Kazuya's voice was too cheery for his own good. He'd never used that kind of tone when he talked to Azuma, ever. "That took forever! I was falling asleep!"

Kazuya pulled his face mask down once more, mitt in place, awaiting one of the southpaw's wild pitches. The pitcher raised his right leg in the air, taking one step forward as he threw the ball in his left hand with all his might. The sound of it hitting Kazuya's mitt and Azuma's shocked face made him feel a bit elated. "That's a strike..._right_?" Azuma seemed confused by what had just happened, glancing at the ball in Kazuya's mitt and back at his bat. "Nice ball! Batter couldn't even move!"

"Stupid! I'm just making sure he can throw strikes!" Azuma retorted as Kazuya threw the ball back towards the pitcher. While it didn't have much speed, that was something the two of them could work on in the future. _'We can work on his speed in the future, but it's a pretty good pitch with little deceleration. Alright, give me one here.'_ The pitcher almost agreed but stopped when he fully grasped the meaning of the sign. "Wait! There?" the southpaw reluctantly agreed, throwing the ball once more towards the direction of the mitt.

"The same pitch!?" Azuma swung without hesitation, but not enough to get it over the fence. "Woah, that was close!" the southpaw could only stare in horror as he watched where the ball landed. _'Nice control. That pitch was only going to be hit foul, at best.' _Azuma clearly underestimated the kid. Azuma couldn't seem to hit them; they always fouled. "Your control sucks. How do you expect me to hit pitches like that?" Azuma was getting more annoyed as he fouled each time the ball made contact with his bat.

_'Keep it up, Azuma-san. Lose your cool. But something's odd about his pitches. Is it getting faster the more he throws? No...rather, it's decelerating less.' _Kazuya know understood what Takashima had meant when she said that his pitches were peculiar. _'I see. His shoulder's flexible, and his arm is supple like a whip. His flexible wrist allows him to put a lot of spin on the ball at the point of release.'  
><em>

Catching the ball that the southpaw had thrown, Kazuya looked up at Azuma with the same cocky expression he got whenever he caught one the pitcher's balls. "That was a ball."

_'Fastballs for life? Yeah, right. I'm sure he doesn't realize it, but his pitch moves at the plate.'_

Kazuya was having a hard time trying to catch the ball when he had no idea where it was going. He had to admit, he was having fun catching for the southpaw. Positioning the mitt in the middle, Kazuya was determined to not let it get past him. He'd make sure to catch it with everything that he had.

The southpaw grinned, having no doubts that the catcher wouldn't catch it. He had to simply trust the mitt. Raising his right leg up as high as it would go, the southpaw slide his foot, allowing the cleats to dig into the dirt mound, as he threw his left arm back and then snapping it forward, releasing the ball from his grip. Azuma had swung, bellowing that he'd hit it out of the park, but the ball had moved to the side, passing the bat up, flying straight into the catcher's mitt with a satisfying smack.

The field went silent; nobody could believe that a loud-mouthed country kid could shut-out a powerhouse hitter like Azuma. Kazuya found himself smiling, even though his hand stung from catching the southpaw's best pitch, he managed to ignore it. This was all just part of being a catcher.

"Nice pitch."

* * *

><p>Kazuya hated to admit, but watching the southpaw come back to thank him in his regular clothing saddened him a bit. "Oh, whats your name, kid?" Kazuya asked as he studied the pitcher for the last time. "Sawamura Eijun." Eijun, huh? Kazuya couldn't help but blurt out the first thing that came to his mind,"Nice name." Eijun's cheeks flushed bright red as he fumbled with words to thank the catcher.<p>

"Miyuki...?" Eijun whispered, golden eyes looking upwards into Kazuya's light brown ones. God, Eijun was just too cute. Kazuya could feel his heart pounding in his chest. Acting upon instinct, Kazuya had pulled Eijun closer towards him, wrapping his arms around Eijun's waist as he inhaled his unique scent; it was a mixture of sweat and nature, but it smelled rather nice. Kazuya was about to let Eijun go, but when he felt the smaller arms wrap around his back, he found it impossible to let Eijun go. Kazuya couldn't understand why Eijun made him feel all warm and cheery, but he liked it. It was better than being depressed and antisocial. Kazuya didn't know how long the two of them stayed in the hug, but it was obvious that Eijun must have felt the same way; he didn't want to let go of Kazuya and possibly lose him forever.

"Ahem..boys, I hate to interrupt, but Sawamura-kun has to be home soon." Kazuya broke the hug, allowing full view of Eijun's reddened face. Their faces weren't too far apart, and the way Eijun was looking at him was almost as if he were expecting something. "Do you mind?" Kazuya asked as he took hold of Eijun's hand. Eijun shook his head, shyly peering up at the catcher. Kazuya brought the hand up towards his lips, placing them upon the top of it. "If you decide to come to Seido, I'll be waiting for you." _  
><em>

Eijun looked pained; it was as if he wanted to say yes, but part of him was still saying no. Eijun gulped, trying his hardest to fight off tears that had started to form. "I'll...think about it."

Kazuya could only smile sadly as he patted the top of Eijun's head. "It's fine if you don't want to come, but...I'd really like to form another battery with you."

It would be another six months before the two of them would meet each other again behind that storage shed; Eijun being late on his first day and Kazuya having overslept from staying up late into the night to watch a movie Kuramochi had lent him.

* * *

><p>Eijun regretted saying yes to going out to get the catcher a bottle of water so early in the morning. It was cold and dark outside; not a soul to be seen in sight. Eijun shuddered to himself slightly, feeling a bit spooked. Hastily making his way up the stairs, Eijun tripped, letting out a loud yelp as he landed face first on the concrete passageway. Eijun heard the sound a door open and a familiar voice call out,"Eijun? What happened?" Eijun looked up to see Kazuya's worried face staring back down at him. "I tripped and I fell..." Kazuya helped him sit up, fingers darting all over his face to check for any signs of damage. "You're just a bit scrapped up; nothing that I can't fix with some peroxide and bandages." Eijun had to hold back a retort as Kazuya picked him up in his strong arms.<p>

"Miyuki, I'm not a baby..." Eijun mumbled as Kazuya sat him down on the chair. "Correction, you're _my_ baby, Eijun." Kazuya replied with a cheeky smile on his face. Eijun felt his stomach churn as he watched Kazuya apply peroxide to a tissue. How many times had Kazuya done this same ritual for himself. "This is gonna sting a bit." Kazuya dabbed the tissue on one of the scars on Eijun's cheek, causing the pitcher to let out a small hiss. "Sorry, sorry." Kazuya had finished up with disinfecting the cuts, and applied a couple of bandages to Eijun's face.

"There we go, all better." Kazuya said as he threw away the tissue and bandage wrappers. Eijun couldn't think properly. While he was thankful Kazuya had patched him up, he was still feeling a bit sick to his stomach knowing that Kazuya had done this many times to cover up the scars that loitered his wrists and arms. "What's with the long face, Eijun?" Eijun didn't know what had come over him, but he found himself wrapping his arms around Kazuya's neck tightly, as if letting go would cause the catcher to fly away from him.

"Please...don't hurt yourself anymore..." Eijun murmured to Kazuya as he felt the tears well up in his eyes once again. If he lost Kazuya, what would happen? Would he ever be the same? His grandma had died when he was still too young to recall what she was like, so he had no clue on what he would do if he lost Kazuya - his boyfriend - no, his world. Being with Kazuya opened up a new side of Eijun's world that he'd never once thought about. The saddest of people always seem to smile the brightest. The most happiest of people seem to be hurting inside, but nobody ever seems to see the tears that they cry.

Eijun couldn't hold back the sobs that wrecked his body as he clung to Kazuya. Kazuya was the reason he was at Seido today; the reason he was closer to Koshien than he'd ever been before; the one who helped him pick up the pieces when body else could. There was no way he could imagine that to someday disappear from out of his life forever.

Kazuya wrapped his arms around Eijun's back, holding him closer to him as the pitcher slowly wore himself out. Kazuya hated seeing Eijun cry, it just never suited such a perfect face. When Eijun had finally fallen asleep, Kazuya gently placed him on the bed, kissing his forehead as he dried the pitchers tear streaked face off with a nearby tissue.

"You have no idea how much I love babying you, Eijun."

* * *

><p>AAAAAAAND...chapter 10 is fucking complete! :'D<p>

It took a month to write this shit and I'm satisfied with the result, so I hope you enjoyed.

Also, be on the lookout for a one-shot from me in celebration of Kazuya's 17th birthday. :D

Until next time~ Remember to: Read, Review, Follow, and Fave~

And if you have any questions, just send me a pm and I'll get back to you ASAP~ ^-^


	11. Chapter 11: Stay Positive

**Hey everyone~**

**Shout out to all of the sweet reviewers who left such positive comments! They make me soooo happy! **

**Anywho, due to popular demand, here is chapter 11, your belated New Years present from me~ :D**

**And the word count for this chapter is 9,336! CX**

**Remember**** to R&R and all that other good stuff! :D **

**Enjoy it, lovelies! **

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><p><span><strong>Chapter 11: Stay <strong>**Positive**

* * *

><p>"Why don't you ever kiss me?" Eijun paused in his writing, turning his head to face the catcher sitting in the chair next to him at his desk. It was during their lunch break that Kazuya asked the question aloud, curiosity lingering in his soft tone as his eyes scanned through Eijun's completed work, checking to see if there were any mistakes in the calculations. "Ah, this one's wrong. You're supposed to use the <em>distance<em> formula." Eijun snatched the paper up, rubbing at the mistake with his eraser rapidly, getting the pink shavings everywhere. "I don't know...maybe I just don't want to kiss you?" Eijun cursed himself mentally; he'd blurted out another rude reply that would be added onto his rapidly growing list of all the stupid things he regretted saying. His answer had come out completely wrong, and he was sure Kazuya was going to be taken aback by it.

Kazuya looked at him somberly, light brown eyes losing their usual glow as he took in what Eijun had just said. "So...you're unhappy?"

"No, no. That's not what I meant..." Eijun grumbled, fighting back the urge to smack some sense into the catcher with the red pencil in his hand. Ever since he started dating Kazuya, he noticed how the catcher's moods seemed to revolve around things he said or did. If he did something stupid, Kazuya would laugh and call him an idiot. If he hurt himself during practice, Kazuya would become more serious and tell him to be more careful the next time. If he got a good grade on one of his tests, Kazuya would praise him and cook him something simple, yet absolutely mouth-watering delicious, as a reward.

"Look, I'm not really a good kisser..." Eijun mumbled, a blush painting his cheeks with dark specks of pink. While he hadn't let Kazuya kiss him on the lips, Eijun had tried to take a few mental notes on how Kazuya would normally kiss him. The feeling of Kazuya's lips against his hot, tanned skin always seemed to make him feel like he was floating away to another galaxy, lost in his own fantasy. He could only imagine how sparks would fly like fireworks in the night sky duration a summer festival if their lips were to ever lock together. "If you...if you get one hit during our upcoming game, I'll give you a congratulatory kiss on the cheek."

Kazuya's lips curled upward into a small smile. "Well then, I won't disappoint you, babe." Eijun froze when he heard the nickname, the grip he had on the pencil loosened and it fell out of his hand, landing on the classroom floor with a small clack. While Kazuya often called him weird names that didn't make any sense like Bakamura, Eij, or Uzumura, this one was definitely new for him. Kazuya seemed to be embracing the whole concept of dating, while Eijun was still trying to figure it out. "WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME!?" Eijun's outburst had caused the students in the classroom, who were either eating their lunch or chattering away with friends, to turn towards him with curious, yet amused, looks on their faces. Kazuya laughed at him mercilessly, adding on to his humiliation even more.

Some of the girls in his class started to whisper about them and not so quietly, either. "Sawamura-kun is so adorable when he's blushing." Some laughed in agreement. "Sawamura-kun is _sooooo_ lucky! Miyuki-senpai's just _so_ perfect." While Kazuya tended to ignore the gossip, finding it conceited at times, he couldn't help but notice the embarrassed blush spreading across Eijun's cheeks as he turned to look towards the group of first-year girls standing around in front of the classroom doorway, just giggling and chattering among themselves innocently.

"Eijun," Kazuya called out to the pitcher, who's attention was occupied on the girls. Eijun made a "hmm" noise to let Kazuya know he'd heard him, still curiously engrossed in the girls conversation. Kazuya sighed, knowing it was futile to take Eijun's attention away from the discussion. There was always plan B, though.

Kazuya smirked, scooting his chair back and making it screech across the tiled floor of the half empty classroom rather loudly. Kazuya stood up from it, clearing his throat suddenly to bring forth their attention towards himself. The girls stopped their chattering, turning their eyes over towards him and blushing and giggling in both embarrassment, shyness, and delight as they met his gaze.

"Ladies, please~ Eijun is the one who is perfect, not me. I'm pretty lucky to have ended up with him. He's a definite keeper." Kazuya emphasized his point by leaning across the desk, pecking an astonished Eijun on his cheek with a smirk on his face. Eijun's face was engulfed in red, all the way from his cheeks up to the tips of his ears as he registered the kiss in his brain.

Kazuya always thought that Eijun was always adorable when he blushed like that and it was all because of him.

* * *

><p>"If you stay up so late, you'll feel really sluggish in the morning." Kazuya remarked from his position on the bottom bunk, watching as Eijun furiously scribbled down answers for his science homework. Eijun regretted not asking Kazuya to help him with it earlier on in the classroom during their lunch break when he had the chance. Science was like math in a way; they both had had a crap ton of numbers, equations, theories, and formulas to memorize, and in the end, they all just gave Eijun a killer headache when he stared at them for too long, his mind blank and wiped clean of the stuff he'd learned in class.<p>

"I know, I know, but I have to finish my science homework by tonight or else, I'll get in trouble!" Eijun whined, golden eyes never leaving the paper the pencil in his left hand was glued to. Science wasn't as difficult and as antagonizing to understand as math was, but Eijun still had a pretty shitty grade in there from his low test scores. That was what he got for sleeping in class and blabbering on and on about becoming the ace, and yet here he is, failing science class and stuck being number 18, definitely not even close to becoming the ace.

Eijun bit down on his lower lip hard enough to leave his teeth imprints on it, trying to hold back a low growl of frustration as he scanned over the text for the third time. Eijun had usually just slept in science class during his first semester, since it was a morning class, so whenever the teacher would go over the homework with the students, Eijun had usually missed out on it. He had never regretted it as much as he did now; they had a huge test coming up in a matter of days that would be over everything they had learned during the first semester, counting as fifty percent of their total grade, and Eijun wasn't even close to completing his study guide to turn in for the extra credit he needed to boost up his bad grade.

While he knew that he could always ask Kazuya - who was good with this sort of stuff - to help him, he always felt guilty about bothering him with his problem. While Kazuya didn't show signs of hating to help him with his homework, Eijun couldn't help but think that he was a nuisance to the catcher. Before they had begun dating, Eijun hadn't felt bad about asking Kazuya to help him with his homework, but now, he hated it. Eijun always felt stupid when he saw Kazuya marking at his mistakes with his pencil as soon as he was handed the paper, even if they were as simple as a misplaced number.

Eijun felt defeat staring him in the face as he eyed the problem one last time; if the sentence were a person, there would no doubt be a nasty, mean smirk on it's smug face as it laughed at him in his face, calling him every synonym of stupid there was to be found in the dictionary. "Miyuki, are you busy?" Eijun grumbled, trying to avoid looking over at the catcher laying on his stomach on the bottom bunk.

Kazuya smirked as he shifted himself up into a sitting position on the bunk. "Oho, so you _do_ need my help?" Eijun glared at him with little effort, feeling drained of energy.

"Stand up for a second." Eijun gawked at him, fearing that he'd be punished for not completing his homework. Eijun scooted the chair backwards, hesitantly standing from it and stepping aside. He watched as Kazuya sat down in it, patting the empty spot on his lap for Eijun to sit down on. Eijun could feel his blood start to freeze over in his body as he stared at the empty spot apprehensively. Eijun had heard many things relating to sitting on someone's lap, but the one thing he was concerned about was accidentally getting himself, or Kazuya, aroused and having it lead to something sexual. Eijun was still iffy about Kazuya even going into the bathroom with him; he had no idea what he'd do if Kazuya wanted sex.

"Eijun? C'mon, it's okay." Kazuya looked at him concernedly, wondering what was wrong with him. Eijun shifted his weight from foot to foot, unsure of what he should do. It felt like Kazuya's eyes were burning craters into his body as he stood there nonplussed. His mind was buzzing with different thoughts, each overriding one another in the race of what he should say. Eijun could feel a horrible headache start to form as he debated sitting down or not.

_'Deep breaths Eijun. Just keep calm. I'm sure nothing bad will happen. Miyuki's not gonna force you into doing anything you don't want.'_ Eijun sucked in a quick breath of air as he strode over towards Kazuya. "Nothing bad will happen, right?" Eijun questioned hesitantly, fear swirling around in his stomach as he tried not to have a panic attack. He kept reminding himself over and over again that nothing would happen, that he was okay and Kazuya wouldn't do anything to hurt him. But he really needed the catcher's reassurance to assure him he was going to be hurt.

Kazuya didn't reply, instead, he pulled Eijun down onto his lap, wrapping his arms around the pitcher's waist. Eijun was growing nervous, sweat started to form on his upper brow as he tried to ease his conscious. He could feel the catcher lift up the bottom of his shirt, exposing his stomach to the cold air. Eijun shifted nervously when he felt Kazuya's cold hands rest on his stomach. Eijun's fear was growing more with each second that dragged on like hours.

"Miyuki, what are you -" Eijun was cut short when he felt Kazuya's fingers start to tickle his exposed stomach. He had been worrying for no reason. Eijun tried to hold back his laughter, but Kazuya kept tickling him faster until he eventually burst into fits of snorts and giddy laughter. Kazuya always seemed to know ways to make him laugh and smile in situations like this.

"You worry too much for your own good." Kazuya murmured as he rested his chin on Eijun's shoulder. Eijun almost choked on his breath; he knew those words anywhere. Those eight words were the same words he'd told Kazuya, when he was fretting over something, on the bus on their way to the inn. Eijun was a bit surprised to hear that the catcher remembered those words from so long ago. He wondered what else Kazuya remembered him saying.

"We need to do your homework or you'll get in trouble, remember?" Kazuya teased as he nuzzled his head against Eijun's neck. Eijun had forgotten all about his homework._ 'Damn this stupid science homework! I can't even enjoy spending time with my boyfriend - wait, did I just think that...? Ahhgggh! Miyuki, you asshole! You're taking over my thoughts, goddammit!' _

* * *

><p>Eijun stared into Kazuya's light brown eyes, resisting the urge to break out into fits of giggles and spoil the moment they'd created. The room was dark, with the exception of the moon illuminating through the thin curtains on the window. Kazuya was smiling at him gleefully, any wider and his teeth would be showing. Eijun had to admit to himself, laying like this, with just a small space in between them, was rather nice. Kazuya's fingers traced over his plump cheeks, rubbing circles along the soft, tan skin.<p>

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Kazuya whispered in the dark, a smirk playing at his lips as he focused on Eijun's face. The pitcher was something else; he wasn't like any of the others who he could easily lie to and feel absolutely nothing when they believed him; Eijun, though, made lying difficult. His heart was too big for his own good, always putting others needs before his very own. Falling for the loud-mouthed, idiotic pitcher wasn't a mistake or just a mere coincidence; Kazuya had known it would happen to him in time, but never so soon. Eijun was trying his best to fix the pieces that had already been broken, and some of them were starting to stay put, as if Eijun had super glued them back together. But how long would it be before the pieces shattered on the floor once again, sending him spiraling back down into the dark abyss of his depression?

"Just making sure you're okay." Eijun replied, hand finding its way down to Kazuya's wrist, fingers feeling their way along the jagged, raised skin. The scars were still there, a permanent reminder at how much Kazuya hated himself and wished to be a better person. Eijun never understood why Kazuya chose him, of all the other guys, to be his boyfriend, to tell his secrets to, hoping they'd find ways of helping him cope with his depression and thoughts. Why did it have to be him, the one who blew their chance at making it to Koshien?

If he wasn't on the baseball team, he'd just be an average nobody who attended school and supported the team from the stands along with the other normal students. But what would have happened to Kazuya if he had just been a normal guy at Seido? Would he have submerged himself further into his depression, or would he have gotten help from the others? Or, Eijun dared not to think of it, would he have been the talk of the school with rumors flying around every comer about why such an important guy like him would take his own life so suddenly?

"Eijun, you're crying." Kazuya remarked with concern. Eijun raised his free hand up to his face, noting that there were hot tears dripping down his cheeks. He had pondered too much on the idea of what Kazuya would do, or where he would even be, without him there. Eijun wiped the tears away swiftly with the back of his hand, turning over onto his side to avoid looking at Kazuya. All he could see think about were the scars loitering Kazuya's wrists and arms, and how he could easily use anything sharp to create more of them and Eijun would never know; he was too shy to even sneak an innocent peak at Kazuya's body in the bath.

Relationships weren't supposed to be about worrying so much over you significant other's problems, they were about loving each other wholeheartedly and boosting the other up. Eijun was sure he was failing at being a good boyfriend to Kazuya. He never knew he would be getting himself into such a big mess when he said yes to the catcher about wanting to progress further in their friendship. He didn't want to breakup with Kazuya; things would get so awkward between them quickly and it'd only cause more problems than necessary for the team. Besides, it wasn't like he was unhappy with the relationship. Ever since they had started dating, Kazuya treated him as if he was a porcelain doll, never being rough with him and always watching what he'd say to him.

The romantic spark between them had yet to fully ignite, and Eijun was starting to feel like he was burdening the catcher by staying glued to his side. There were things Kazuya refused to tell him about, like his father, middle school, and why he never went to anyone for help with coping with the depression and anxiety, stressing himself out by constantly worrying if his sleeves were properly rolled down to cover the marks and bandages, so he wouldn't worry anyone.

Eijun didn't have to say anything back, he didn't think he even could or risk saying something completely unnecessary. Kazuya shifted, laying himself back down, before wrapping his arms tightly around Eijun's smaller figure. Eijun could feel Kazuya's head resting against the back of his neck, warm, minty breath tickling the inside of his ear.

* * *

><p>"Eijun-kun, are you okay?" Haruichi asked him at breakfast, noting how quiet he was being. Eijun nodded slowly, feeling out of place without Kazuya sitting next to him. He'd woken up to an empty bed that morning and assumed that it was his fault for breaking down into tears last night from thinking too much and then turning away from Kazuya when he was trying his best to comfort him. It all just made Eijun feel like an even bigger asshole than ever. It wasn't like they had had an argument, it was more like Eijun pushing Kazuya away from him.<p>

"I'm fine, I guess." He wasn't fine. He just wanted to crawl back into bed and redo the whole night over and correct everything. Eijun secretly envied the normal couples on the team, wishing he and Kazuya could be like that, but knowing it'd be really awkward to even think about kissing behind the coach's back, or dare he even think of it, heated make-out sessions in the storage shed that escalated into something more passionate. Eijun shuddered at the thought of getting caught by Kataoka, or worse...coach Ochiai.

"Harucchi, I have a question." Haruichi set his bowl of rice down on his tray, turning his attention over towards Eijun, who looked nervous for some odd reason. Whatever the question was, Haruichi knew that it was going to leave him blushing pinker than his own eyes. With a gulp, Haruichi asked,"What is it, Eijun-kun?" he knew he was going to regret it once he heard the words fly out of the pitcher's mouth.

"What's kissing Furuya like?" Haruichi couldn't get any redder than he already was. Eijun was asking him for love advice, once again. But something as personal as kissing? What was Eijun thinking? Did he really think that his best friend and his rival were doing inappropriate things? What was Eijun going to ask him next? How different sex positions affect the outcome?

"Uh...well...it's great, I guess? We just simply kiss each other on the lips or cheek, we don't go any further!" Haruichi waved his hands around in front of him for emphasis, receiving a weird look from Eijun in return. The awkward tension between them was soon brought to an end when Eijun's eyes widened, brightening up a bit as Kazuya pulled out the chair next to him, flashing him a cheesy smile.

Had he overheard the whole conversation?

"Good morning, Kominato," Kazuya greeted him with a laugh, before sneaking a messy kiss onto Eijun's cheek, earning a scowl from the pitcher as he wiped the catcher's saliva off of his pink-tinted cheek with the red sleeve of his shirt. "And good morning to you too, Eijun."

Haruichi didn't miss the scrape of Eijun's chair as he shifted himself closer towards the catcher. At least Eijun was starting to get back to his old self.

* * *

><p>Eijun was lounging around with Kazuya in the bullpen; they were supposed to be practicing, but decided to take a short break as nobody seemed to be looking in their general direction. As Kazuya gulped down the water from his water bottle, Eijun realized he'd accidentally left his in the dugout. "Miyuki?" The catcher held up his index finger in a gesture of telling Eijun to hold on a second as he drained the last few droplets from his water bottle.<p>

"What's up?" Kazuya asked as he fiddled with the top of his water bottle, trying to see if there was any more water inside. To his dismay, there wasn't, which meant he'd have to pick his ass up from the ground and go hike up the trail to the water cooler near the dugout.

"I left my water bottle in the dugout, can I go get it?" Kazuya smirked, this was perfect. Why get up and waste his precious energy when Eijun could go fill up the bottle for him? He was heading towards the direction of the water cooler, anyways. Holding the red, plastic bottle out, Kazuya motioned for Eijun to take it. Eijun scowled and huffed under his breath, but still took it from the catcher's hand.

"Fill it up all the way, too!" Kazuya shouted, waving him off as he stepped out of the bullpen. Eijun turned his head around swiftly to glare at the catcher, sticking his tongue out at him in a childish manner. If he wasn't dating Kazuya, he would have done so many things he could have done to the water. Grumbling as he made his way to the water cooler, Eijun made a beeline to the dugout first, grabbing his white water bottle from off of the bench, hoping nobody had contaminated his water. Eijun had just spun around when he came face to face with Ochiai. Eijun couldn't help but feel his stomach drop ten feet under him as he looked at the man in front of him uneasily, fearing he'd be in serious trouble if he spoke up.

"Sawamura, are you busy?" Eijun cringed at the man's pronunciation of his last name. For some reason, whenever Ochiai said his name, it sounded like the man had tasted something vulgar. It never sounded the way the others or Kataoka would say it, it sounded really bitter and distasteful, making Eijun somewhat wish that his last name wasn't Sawamura.

"Yes, sir?" Eijun tried his best to be polite when talking to Ochiai whenever Kazuya wasn't around, because unlike his four-eyed partner, Ochiai seemed to dislike him greatly. Eijun couldn't understand why, he trained just as hard as the other pitchers did, he tried not to hog Kazuya all to himself at practice, and he was respectful of the adults and senpai's. Maybe it was because he called Ochiai sergeant? It was all just a big mess to Eijun.

"The first opponent Seido faces in the fall tournaments is a southpaw, just like you, but he's a sidearm pitcher, like Kawakami. Have you ever considered pitching sidearm in batting practice?" Ochiai says it like it's the most natural thing in the world, but Eijun is feeling a bit flustered up, stomach flipping around in circles like a dryer tumbling clothes around. Switch to being a sidearm pitcher? All because he was a southpaw like the pitcher they were up against? Kataoka had never made him pitch like Narumiya, the number one southpaw in the district. He'd also never made Furuya, Nori, or Tanba pitch like Shunshin, Maki, or Sanada. So why was Ochiai trying to differ things up? What exactly was he going to tell Kazuya when they resumed their practice session in the bullpen? That he was switching to being a sidearm pitcher?

"Not really, but...I guess I can give it a shot." Eijun forced a smile on his face as he replied to Ochiai. Kazuya was going to kill him when he heard the news, so Eijun was going to have to make sure Kazuya was in a good mood before he told him. As if he was a mind-reader, Ochiai immediately began a new discussion. "Don't tell Miyuki about this, though. You should start practicing with the other catchers, until your new form is polished, that is." Eijun felt his heart sink down into the pits of his stomach. He loved practicing with Kazuya, and the jealousy inside of him would only skyrocket if he saw him practicing with another pitcher everyday. Chris-senpai wasn't around to catch for him, so his mind wouldn't be drifted away.

"Okay..." It wasn't okay, he didn't want this to happen. He just wanted to pitch to Kazuya's mitt. He didn't want to be split apart from his favorite person. How was he supposed to monitor Kazuya's behavior if he wasn't allowed to be pitching to him? The horrible possibilities were endlessly piling up inside of Eijun's mind, making him feel guilty about having gotten involved in the sticky situation. He could have just said no and went on his merry way, forgetting about everything to do with Kazuya mutilating his own skin with any sharp object he could get a hold off, just to release the pent up frustration and sadness that burrowed deep into the darkened abyss of his heart. But what if he had caught Kazuya in the action? Then what? It would become his business, but then again, it wouldn't. It wasn't his skin and he and Kazuya probably wouldn't even be dating, so it wouldn't be his problem, since Kazuya wouldn't be his boyfriend, either.

Eijun walked past Ochiai wordlessly, lost in his own deep thoughts about what he was going to do. Eijun had forgotten to refill the water bottle up for Kazuya, so he'd just let the catcher have some of his; he wasn't exactly thirsty anymore. Eijun wondered who would be willing to catch his awful sidearm pitches? Eijun didn't know the first thing about being a sidearm pitcher; he was so used to having his own unique form that even the thought of switching forms never seemed to cross his mind. His unique form adapted to his flexible body and it never hurt when he pulled his arm all the way back and then instantly snapped it forward with ease. Being a sidearm pitcher could render his flexibility. Eijun figured it would be best to ask Kawakami about it. But then again, Kawakami was a right handed pitcher; Eijun was a southpaw.

The bullpen came in sight up ahead, Kazuya still sitting around bored, spinning the baseball on the tip of his finger around like how a basketball player would do with a basketball. Eijun really wanted to learn the spinning technique, but never had enough patience to actually sit down, learn it, and actually perfect it. It took him forever to learn how to ride a bike without training wheels attached to the back wheel for balance and stability. Maybe he was just going to have to let Kazuya go and perfect his sidearm pitching with another catcher.

"Hey, what took you so long? And why the glum face, did someone say something to you?" Kazuya was worried about him, like he always was. Eijun shrugged his shoulders belatedly, handing the catcher his bottle of water he'd retrieved from the dugout, moments before he'd run into Ochiai. Kazuya took it with a small thanks, taking it up to his parted lisp to let the fluid into his mouth to quench his thirst. If his mind wasn't a hazy mess at the moment, Eijun would have been a bit embarrassed as he realized that giving Kazuya his water bottle and letting him drink from it was practically an indirect kiss.

* * *

><p>At dinnertime, Eijun had scanned the cafeteria full of the remaining baseball team members until he spotted Kawakami sitting with Shirasu and Ono at one of the front tables, eating their dinner and chatting about something Eijun couldn't hear from his spot next to Haruichi and Furuya as they sat at one of the far back tables with the other first years, away from the second years. Eijun was growing anxious as he hadn't seen Kazuya since they had departed ways. Eijun had wanted to stay behind with Kazuya to put away the balls, but Kazuya had exhorted him to go bathe with the other first years, promising that they'd regroup again at dinner.<p>

Dinner had started fifteen minutes ago and there was still no trace of Kazuya. Eijun was beginning to grow worried as he knew that leaving Kazuya alone was never a good idea, but Kazuya had forced him to go with the other first years to the bath. Eijun would've protested, but Kanemaru had butted in, grabbing a hold of the back of his jersey, pulling him along without much effort. Eijun had watched as Kazuya's figure retreated, growing smaller and smaller in the distance and then completely out of Eijun's sight.

Getting up from his chair, giving a reassuring gesture with his hands to Haruichi and Furuya as they had glanced up at him questioningly. "Where are you going, Eijun-kun?" Haruichi questioned, the chopsticks in his hands frozen in the air, still holding a few pieces of rice on it. Eijun assured him that he would be right back, and that he was only going to go talk to the senpai for a few minutes. Haruichi exchanged mixed glances with Furuya, but shrugged and resumed eating.

Eijun glanced around the tables for any signs of Kazuya, but it was useless. He could point out the bespectacled catcher anywhere, even in a crowded stadium with over a thousand people. Kazuya was easy to point out; white hat, black framed glasses, and that stupid smirk were the key factors to his appearance.

Upon arriving at Kawakami's table, Eijun found it hard to come up with anything to say to the sidearm pitcher. While Eijun knew that he could fully converse with him, he found it a bit harder to do since Kazuya wasn't around to cover for him, just in case the wrong thing slipped out of his mouth and he was too flustered up to continue on._ 'Damn it...I rely too much on Miyuki for my own_ _good.' _

"Sawamura, what are you doing?" Eijun blanched at the sound of Shirasu's low, gruff voice. Eijun peered up shyly, meeting the intense gazes of the second years sitting at the table near the quiet and reserved right fielder. They were surprised to see that Eijun was all by himself, always having seen him tagging closely alongside Kazuya like a faithful dog. Seeing Eijun by himself, without the catcher anywhere near him, was preposterous. The pitcher didn't look melancholy; he looked just about the same as he always did every other day.

"Nori-senpai, can I, um, talk to you about something?" Eijun fidgeted with the hem of his t-shirt nervously, the comforting presence of the catcher that he had grown fond of wasn't there to support him. He was all on his own. Murmurs about why he was all on his own and why Kazuya wasn't with him were filling his ears, swirling around in his mind, bouncing off of each other, giving Eijun a headache as he tried to block out their words.

"Sit down, Sawamura." Shirasu instructed, motioning at the empty seat in front of the sidearm pitcher. Eijun pulled out the chair, trying to ignore the curious, questioning glances from the other senpai as he slowly sunk down into the chair. It was awkward sitting with the second years, even if they weren't intimidating, they were still older than he was and more experienced and wiser.

"So...what did you want to talk about, Sawamura?" Kawakami asked with a polite smile on his face, trying to ease Eijun from his nervousness as he sat with the other members of the baseball team. Eijun peered up, then looked back down at his hands clutching the soft, gray fabric of his sweatpants. "I want to switch to be being a sidearm pitcher," The once boisterous chatter of the table muted as the words left Eijun's lips softly, almost as if he, too, weren't too happy about the situation at hand.

Everyone was either gawking, mouths agape, or their eyes widening in disbelief. Eijun was a southpaw who's body was naturally flexible with supple joints, allowing him to immediately change the direction of his pitch. His form also doesn't allow the batter, or catcher, to see the release point of the pitch. Why would he want to change from the form he'd worked hard to improve over the summer to another form that he'd have to work on all fall? And wouldn't changing to a different pitching form destroy his on?

"W-why?" Kawakami sputtered out, still reeling from the shock of Eijun's words. Eijun merely shrugged. "I want to be important to the team, since the next pitcher we're up against is a southpaw, like me, but he's a sidearm pitcher, just like you, Nori-senpai." The others were still trying to make sense of the words, finding it hard to believe that Eijun would just get up and throw away all the hard work he'd accomplished over the summer with his form and start all over form scratch, just because of another pitcher.

"I understand that you want to help the team by imitating the other pitcher's pitches, but aren't you worried about what will happen to your original form if you switch?" Shirasu questioned him suddenly, making every hair on Eijun's body stand up from the cold tone. Was he worried about what will happen to his original form if he does switch? Of course. But Kazuya's reaction worried him more than destroying his form.

"I guess that it can't hurt to help you, Sawamura, but have you talked to Miyuki about this?" Eijun shrunk down into his chair more, afraid he'd be asked that question. He couldn't lie, because it'd be written all over his face, and he was terrible at lying. But if he told the truth, then Kawakami wouldn't help him. There was only one thing to do. "I-It's a surprise!" Eijun barked, face heating up as he tried to explain why he hadn't told Kazuya about switching forms. Kawakami blinked in surprise, part of him wasn't believing the other pitcher, but Eijun looked so determined that it was almost physically painful to say no to him.

"Alright, if you're sure about it." Eijun leaped up from his chair, thanking the side-armed pitcher with repeatedly. Heading back to his seat, Eijun noticed that it had now been occupied by a certain bespectacled catcher he knew all too well. "Scoot over." Eijun grumbled, folding his arms against his chest, and furrowing his brow as he gave the catcher the most menacing look he could muster up. Kazuya merely snorted into his hand at the look, finding the look on Eijun's face to be as cute as a baby animals, rather than menacing like a criminal posing for a mugshot.

"Just sit on my lap." Kazuya teased, smirking to himself as a red blush engulfed the pitcher's tanned face. Eijun rolled his eyes, deciding to just drag up a vacant chair from one of the tables behind them instead of embarrassing himself any further by sitting on the catcher's lap. Eijun was a bit preoccupied with his thoughts to notice that Kazuya had sneakily stolen food from off his plate. With glowered at the catcher, raising his voice to yell at the catcher to stop stealing his food when he had a full plate of food and a bowl of rice in front of him. Haruichi, who had been watching the scene between the two unfold, giggled at the sight of Eijun offhandedly accusing Kazuya, who was sporting a nasty, shit-eating grin on his face, of stealing his food.

"Eijun-kun, you and Miyuki-senpai are cute together." Eijun paused in the accusation, turning his head slowly towards Haruichi, arm still out, index finger still pointed at the catcher, who had fallen silent himself in goading Eijun on. Eijun slowly withdrew his arm back, taking his finger away from Kazuya's direction. Eijun was speechless. How could Haruichi just out and say that so casually. Eijun couldn't understand why people thought they were such a "cute couple" when they barely knew what it was like for them. They were just like any of the other couples you'd see walking around the campus, they just never seemed to act like they were a couple.

* * *

><p>"So..." Kazuya begun slowly, unsure of what to say next. Eijun had just asked him if he could catch for Furuya, and Kazuya was beginning to wonder if there was something he'd done to upset Eijun, but the pitcher reassured him that it wasn't the reason. "Is it alright if you catch for Furuya at practice for a while?" Eijun tried to ignore the uncanny feeling swirling around in his stomach as he tried to ease himself off of Kazuya. He didn't want to hog Kazuya all to himself, but part of him got overworked with jealousy whenever he saw Kazuya catching for another pitcher, especially if said pitcher was the ace, Furuya.<p>

"I guess, but aren't you gonna be overcome with jealousy by seeing me practicing with Furuya and not _you_?" Kazuya flashed him a solicitous look, but Eijun kept up the facade. "You're being awfully nice to someone who has the number and title that you want. Are you sick or something?" Kazuya wasn't falling for it, sensing cracks in the masks that Eijun had put up to conceal the truth about something he'd done or was about to do.

"Eijun, if something's wrong, then just tell me. I won't get mad at you or call you any names." Kazuya tried to ease the truth out of him, but Eijun's lips were zipped tightly. Kazuya wouldn't understand him. Eijun hated to lie to Kazuya about such an important thing, but Kazuya had been the one to start the lying game himself, and Eijun sometimes felt like he was nothing more than a pawn in the game, and if he fell any deeper into the catcher's inescapable plethora of traps, he'd never be able to fully come to terms with the aftermath.

"I'm fine, Miyuki." Eijun replied with a heavily forced smile on his face, burying the guilt he was feeling deep within his chest.

* * *

><p>Eijun had anticipated on lunch break the next day. He'd made Kazuya stay behind in the classroom, noting the catcher's nose had been runny and his eyes were watery, and he sneezed constantly. Eijun had been carrying around tissues in the pockets of his uniform pants all day, handing them over whenever the catcher sniffled, his nose started running, or he sneezed, and made snot come flying out of his nose. While Kazuya tried to play it off as simply his allergies acting up, Eijun wasn't falling for it. He could have made Kazuya stay in bed and rest, the catcher assured him that he would fine; he refused to miss school or baseball practice over something small.<p>

Upon entering the class Haruichi and Furuya were in, he saw them sitting in the back, along with some of the first year members on the second string, by the windows. Haruichi was the first to notice him, smiling and waving at him from across the room. Eijun smiled as he walked towards the group of first years sitting in the group. "What brings you here, Eijun-kun?" Haruichi cocked his head to the side, wondering just what Eijun was doing here when he usually ate his lunch with Kazuya in the pitcher's classroom. Kazuya had been at morning practice, and had walked back with Eijun to the dorms, and Haruichi had seen the two of them walking to school together, and he'd witnessed Kazuya dropping Eijun off in his first period before making his way up the stairs to his first period on the second years floor. So why was Eijun here when he should technically be with his_ boyfriend_?

"I need to talk to Kariba, but I couldn't do it at practice, because I want to surprise Miyuki." Lying became easier to do as he got used to it and did it more frequently. He knew Haruichi didn't believe him from the sour expression lingering on his face, but the others, especially Furuya, seemed fully convinced, otherwise. They scooted their chairs and desks over and made room for Eijun to pull up a chair to join the group. "What'd you want to talk about Sawamura?" Kariba inquired, seeming to be fooled by Eijun's lie. "Will you catch for me? I wanna try pitching sidearm!" Haruichi shifted in his seat, probably giving him a weird look from behind those long, pink bangs. Eijun was sometimes grateful the second baseman never cut or pinned his bangs back out of his face, even though he had nice, pinkish-red eyes, he didn't want to see what those eyes looked like when Haruichi was pissed at him.

"Sure thing, but won't your boyfriend be upset about it?" Eijun fidgeted at the word "boyfriend", it was so weird hearing it come out from someone else's mouth when he wasn't used to hearing it come from his own or Kazuya's.

* * *

><p>Eijun stood at the mound, Kariba squatting in the catcher's box, mitt out, ready to catch his pitch in his new form. He'd received a few pointers from Kawakami, but it was hard to learn and figure out the correct footing and position when Kawakami wasn't a southpaw. Eijun had decided to mirror the sidearm-pitcher's stance, switching his foot to first base instead of third base. Eijun could feel the eyes of everyone in the dugout watching him.<p>

"Come on, Sawamura!" Eijun could only hope that he wouldn't make a complete fool out of himself in front of everyone. Winding up, Eijun shouted,"Here I go!" Eijun sucked in a deep breath, puffing his cheeks out with a determined gaze, and threw his right foot down, as he let his left arm swing off to the side, it felt so unnatural to him.

He heard the sound of the half-assed pitch hitting the mitt with a smack. Somehow, the ball he'd thrown using a sidearm form just didn't sound as satisfying when it hit the catcher's mitt as it did when he pitched in his normal form. Eijun tried his best to be positive about it. At least the damn ball actually hit the mitt this time around. "How did you like my sidearm pitch!? It can be put to some use, right?"

The answers he got in return weren't what he'd expected.

"...Yup, it's amusing."

"Funny, funny."

"Nice trick, uh-huh."

"I-Is it _that_ bad!?" He knew it was bad, but hearing the others call him out on it stung his heart a little. "I heard our next opponent will a southpaw sidearmer, right!? Same age as me, too! So, as the only southpaw, I decided to give the team a helping hand...!" The others started to laugh at him as if he were a lunatic. Eijun blushed red in mortification. "What!? What are you laughing at!?"

Kazuya didn't seem angry at him, rather amused at him. Or maybe he was just pulling a facade, and Eijun was going to get yelled at and lectured when they returned to their dorm? "Did you come up with that idea on your own?" Kazuya smirked at him from his position next to coach Kataoka. Eijun mocked a salute to him. "Sir, no sir! The sergeant is to credit! His advice was my motivation!"

Kazuya, along with the others, seemed quite confused at who Eijun was referring too as "sergeant". Kataoka, understanding just who Eijun was referring to as "sergeant", shot Ochiai a sharp glance, but didn't say anything.

"Boss! I'm ready to throw to the batters!" Eijun yelled from the mound, wondering what was taking Kataoka so long to address him. Eijun was dying to pitch, no matter if it was sidearm, underhand, or his regular form.

"We only have four days 'till the match, right!? If you just order me to, I'll become your batting-practice pitcher for as long as you need me to! And I could throw not just sidearm, but also underhand, too, if you want me too!" He was basically offering out of his own will to become just a side supporter for the team.

Kataoka had finally come to a decision. Turning towards Eijun, Kataoka's piercing gaze from behind his shades made Eijun's blood freeze inside of his body. "I don't need a lousy sidearmer. Get off the mound, Sawamura, you're in the way of practice." Turning away from Eijun, Kataoka ordered the other players to start warming up.

Eijun looked dejected that he had been ordered to get off of the mound, and that he couldn't be of use to the batters at practice. _'I'm...I'm in the waaay!? It's not like I'm all eager to do this, either! But if I can help the team, at least a little, this way -'_

"Sawamura," Eijun turned to look at Kataoka, expecting a harsh lecture. "Haven't you been trying to polish the low and away pitch? why did you stop halfway through? I appreciate your desire to help the team in any way you can, but what will you have left if you destroy your form with halfhearted sidearm pitching?" The words sunk deep into Eijun's heart, carving their way on the surface of it as a permanent scar of his naive self for trusting Ochai's word.

Kataoka turned his attention towards Kazuya, who had been closely watching him with an expression Eijun couldn't read. "Miyuki, we'll be doing a game simulation today. Have the pitchers get ready!" Kazuya snapped his gaze away from Eijun, to call out a loud,"Yes, sir!"

Kataoka turned to where Maezono, Kuramochi, Higasa and the other batters standing not too far behind him. "At the same time, the batters' task is to practice sign plays with runners on base. Put pressure and shake up the pitchers when you're on base!" The reply of,"Yes, sir!" Reverberated throughout the field, as the members started to scatter around the field like mice, leaving Eijun still standing up on the mound, glove still on his right hand, a sour expression permanently marked on his face.

"Coach, should I include Eijun into the game simulation?" Kazuya asked loudly as Kataoka passed him by, making sure the coach would hear his question over the emphatic chatter of the other members scattering about. "Yeah, and make sure to tell him to pitch in his own style! It will be the biggest disservice to the team if its indispensable fighting power ends up destroying his form in the middle of the tournament."

* * *

><p>Eijun had just returned from the bath to the dorm he shared with Kazuya, his brown hair still dripping with droplets of water, wetting his shirt with big blotches. Eijun noticed a piece of lined paper on the desk with his name largely written across the top. Taking the note off the desk, Eijun sat down on the bunk, towel still on his head, to read the note the catcher had left for him.<p>

"Dear Eijun, I'll be back in a bit, just running to the doctors with Rei-chan to pick up my prescription." Eijun read aloud, trying to imitate the catcher's voice as best he could. Kazuya had been suffering from allergies for the past few days, and with a game in just a few short days, Seido didn't need their star catcher, who was also team captain, with a runny nose or itchy, watery eyes calling terrible plays.

Eijun was tired from practice, wanting nothing more than to drift off into a blissful slumber, but his phone refused to let him, buzzing in a "You've got mail" sort of way. Groaning in frustration, Eijun turned on his phone, expecting it to be a text from Kazuya, but, to his surprise, it wasn't from the four-eyed catcher. No, it was from Wakana.

_"Eijun,_ _you have a game coming up, right!? I just wanted to wish you good luck out there! Also, is Miyuki-san your boyfriend yet? - Wakana-chan" _While it was sweet that she was supporting him and wished him good luck, he was still a little unsure if he should tell her that he and Kazuya were dating, but it didn't quite feel like dating to him; the relationship was slow and simple, the way Eijun had wanted it to be, yet he wasn't sure if it was fair to the boy he was dating. The boy who took such great care of him, who called plays for him during games, who would play catch with him until it got too cold or too dark outside to continue, and the boy who had loved him from the very start, yet Eijun felt he was far too dependent on Kazuya than necessary; it shouldn't be Kazuya taking care of him, it should be the _opposite_ way around.

He had promised himself he wouldn't tell his parents about the relationship until he saw them in person again. Telling them over the phone wouldn't be proper, and what about his old friends in Nagano? He wanted to tell them in person, as well. They'd probably joke with him about nailing an important figure of the baseball world as a boyfriend, and then proceed with the embarrassing, personal questions about their relationship that would make Eijun's face turn bright red, and would leave Kazuya chuckling nervously beside him, afraid of saying the wrong thing to Eijun's friends and getting hell from them.

Eijun replied back to her with,_"Thanks for the support, Wakana-chan. And you'll see soon."_

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><p>Eijun couldn't sleep. Kazuya had come back a mere hours ago, yet it still felt like he'd entered the room a few minutes ago. They'd exchanged greetings, and Kazuya had changed into his pajamas and then climbed into the bed next to him. Eijun was grateful he hadn't down the slow, undressing game. The last time Kazuya teased him about his innocence with the silly game, his fingers had just traced over the outline of his boxers black waistline, ready to pull them down, when Eijun gave in to his own embarrassment and covered his eyes with his hands to obstruct his vision from seeing what was hiding inside of Kazuya's red and black boxers.<p>

He supposed going out for a stroll in the cold night wouldn't be such a bad idea, but he didn't want to risk getting sick again and having to sit, or be taken, out of a game. Pitching to him came as natural as breathing; the adrenaline that shot throughout his body like tiny lightening bolts as he stepped up on the mound, the feeling of the wind blowing in his face when he whipped his arm forward to release the ball from his grip, and the umpire's deep, boisterous voice shouting,"Strike!" when it landed in Kazuya's mitt, the batter's face stuck between confusion and shock as he looked at the ball in the mitt from the batters box.

Waking Kazuya up would make him grouchy and less than favorable to converse with when he kept grumbling under his breath about it wasn't even close to the time the alarm rang and how it was still dark outside. There were times in the morning where Kazuya refused to get up, mumbling about needing an extra five more minutes when they were already running extremely late for practice and would have to run extra laps to make up for the time they'd wasted.

Letting his hands find Kazuya's sleeve, he slide his fingers underneath the soft fabric, tracing them up and down the jagged scars on the catcher's wrist, wondering if it had hurt when Kazuya made those marks, and how old they were. How was he the only one who Kazuya confided in about his problem when there were others far more suited to know about this than him. Why didn't Kazuya tell Kuramochi, his best friend, that he was hurting? Or even Chris? Surely the third-year catcher would be of better assistance to Kazuya than he was.

Leading his hand down under the covers, Eijun slide his hand into the catcher's large, open one, giving it a gentle squeeze to let Kazuya know he was there for him. He felt Kazuya's fingers wrap themselves around the outer part of his hand, squeezing it back firmly.

"Goodnight, Miyuki." Eijun whispered in the darkness. Neither said a word after that, but that was okay. They didn't need to say anymore.

Kazuya wanted to believe, more than anything else, that Eijun wouldn't leave him or break him apart more than he already was, but the future was vast and unknown and knowing Eijun, if he was unhappy, he wouldn't stick around him any longer.

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><p><strong>And that completes Chapter 11! :D<strong>

**Uwaaaah, i'm sorry for the wait. U_U Like, this was supposed to be out on Christmas, but I had a family emergency and had no time to write. ;o; **

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter as I had worked my ass off trying to make it long to make up for the monthly update I missed. I promise that I'll be more productive with my monthly updates! ^^ **

**If you liked this chapter, leave review, follow, favorite, or whatever. And if you have any suggestions or questions about the story in general, drop them in the review box or PM me and I'll get back to you ASAP! :D **


	12. Chapter 12: Let it All Out

**Forgive**** me for not updating! School got in the way of my writing schedule! D: **

**A big shout out to Lunary for discussing this story with me and giving me some creative ideas to use! :D**

**This monster chapter is done! **

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><p><span><strong>Chapter 12: Let it All Out<strong>

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><p>Even though being with Eijun was one adventure after another, Kazuya still felt hollow inside. He was happy being with Eijun, yes, but his heart still wasn't whole. He loved the pitcher more than baseball, and would do anything to make him smile or laugh, but slowly, he felt the depression grab hold of him, once again, threatening to drag him back down into the deep, dark pit he kept trying to escape.<p>

When Eijun had reached out to him and pulled him out of the darkness of his mind and into the brightness of the world awaiting, he'd try to be positive and laugh and smile to at least act normal around the others, there were often times where he just couldn't muster up the strength to do so, wanting to just curl up underneath his bed covers and cry until he could shed no more tears or fell asleep.

Today was one of those days. He'd sat there at his desk and stared at the math test in front of him, the numbers blurry in his vision as he tried to recollect his thoughts. The sounds of his classmates' pencils scratching along their papers were louder than usual on testing days and it bothered him relentlessly.

He didn't understand why he was feeling so glum today; the weather was warm for a change, sun shining dimly through the puffy, white clouds floating about in the sky, but that morning, he couldn't find the strength to get out of bed, feeling slightly lightheaded as he propped himself up with his shoulders but lost the strength to stay up, crashing back down on to the bed. Eijun had been thoughtful enough to go out of his way just to bring him breakfast in bed, encouraging him to eat something when he'd pushed the tray away from him with a nauseated grimace, and hadn't left his side from the moment his legs felt stable enough to hold his weight instead of turning to jelly, shadowing his every movement on the field, until they had split ways for their classes.

The game against Teito was so close - just two days away - and he needed to rid himself of the mopey feeling soon. After practice had ended for the night and he'd showered to get rid of the sweat and dirt, he could look forward to spending some quality time with Eijun, cuddled up in bed under the covers together, as they picked out a cheesy movie to fall asleep to.

The teacher called for all pencils to be put down, signaling the end of testing. Many students let out groans of discouragement for not being able to have finished in time while others sighed heavily in relief, meaning they had either finished in the nick of time or that it was finally over and they were free from the mental torture of trying to remember everything they'd hastily crammed into their brains the night before the test.

As the teacher came around to collect their tests, she'd paused when she had taken up his, noting the lack of effort he'd put into it. When given a math test, he'd always scribbled out whatever came to his mind, whether it was right or not, taking up half the space needed to work out the problem. He preferred solving problems out by hand, rather than going to a calculator for assistance, unless it was absolutely necessary to use one.

"Miyuki-kun, are you alright? You look a little pale, dear." He'd shrugged his broad shoulders in response to her question. He could blame it on his allergies or lack of a good nights rest, but what if she told Kataoka or Takashima? He couldn't even force himself to smile at her as he mumbled, "I'm fine. I'm just really tired from baseball practice."

After all the tests had been picked up, ready to be graded by the teacher that following evening, Kazuya leaned forward in his seat and tapped Kuramochi on the shoulder with the back of his pencil. The shortstop turned around in the chair to face him, a questioning look on his face. "What's up?" Kuramochi asked nonchalantly, running his fingers through his gelled up hair. Kazuya feigned a smile as he looked at his best friend despondently. "Um...Youichi, can we, maybe, hang out during lunch?"

Kuramochi blinked in confusion, wondering why Kazuya was asking him if they could hang out at lunch. Most of the time, he ate lunch with Zono, since he didn't want to distract Ryousuke from his studies or own friends. They had their limits to how much time they spent together during school; after Seido had lost to Inashiro in the finals of the summer tournament, it was a rare sight to see them together and acting like any other regular couple. Their personal time was split when the third years retired from the team and coach Kataoka had them practicing until the sky had darkened with dimmed stars unable to shine at their fullest due to the blinding lights of the city.

"I guess so, why?" Not like he had any important plans in store for lunch anyways. He watched as the smile faltered on Kazuya's face as he glanced down at his sleeves, thankful they hid his arms that were littered with scars from the world. "There's something important that I need to tell you, but...I can't tell you here..."

Kuramochi had allowed himself to be dragged out of the boisterous classroom, down the jammed hallways of students trying to meet up with their friends for lunch, and into an empty stairwell by the catcher, wondering why it was just the two of them meeting and how come Zono wasn't invited to their secret session. Whatever it was, Kazuya must have trusted him enough to let him in on some type of secret or burden he was carrying that went beyond the role as the vice-Captain, seeming more to be a close friends-only situation.

"I bet you're wondering why I dragged you here, right?" He asked with a nervous laugh, eyes darting everywhere except for the shortstop's face. Kuramochi rolled his eyes and nodded his head slightly, wanting this "top-notch secret meeting" to be over with so he could get back to the classroom and enjoy his meal in peace. "Alright...don't freak out when you see this, okay?" Biting down on his lower lip, Kazuya slowly rolled up the sleeves of his blazer and white uniform shirt, exposing the self-made scars to his best friend, revealing the secret of just how much he hated himself.

"Holy shit...what happened to your arms?" Kuramochi whispered in a hushed voice, all color draining from his face, eyes widened with fear, and mouth agape as he tried to think of what could have happened to Kazuya in order for his arms to be scratched to pieces. He'd remembered the day he'd seen the catcher wearing short sleeves for a change, though, multiple band-aids were plastered on his arms and wrists, he'd never really gave it much thought, finding it to be none of business to pry if Kazuya didn't say anything about them.

"I...did this to myself...first, with a razor...second, with the blade to a handheld pencil sharpener I have in my room. I started doing this during our first year...and it escalated into an addiction. Youichi, I'm trying to stop, but my arms have been itching so bad and I just can't scratch them...I promised Eijun I wouldn't reopen the scars, but it's getting too hard to keep that promise." His voice was feeble and it cracked in different places, and he was about ready to burst into tears of having to confide in someone who he considered to be his best friend about his secret.

Kuramochi was silent for a few minutes, taking in everything he'd just learned about Kazuya and trying to make sense of it all. "Well...I'm not sure how I'm supposed to respond to this. But...you're my best friend and I'm glad you told me why you always wore long sleeved shirts in the summer. I honestly don't know why you'd consider this to be your only option; you know you could have just come to me sooner for help. It's not like I'm going to judge you on having a shitty father who won't accept you, ya know?"

Kazuya fixated his gaze to the floor, not wanting to meet Kuramochi's disappointed gaze. He shouldn't have put it off for so long, knowing the shortstop could have given him the support he needed without hesitation, but he never had the courage to do so. "I didn't want to ruin our friendship..." Telling Kuramochi was more painful than the time Eijun had found out he was a cutter and had then taken it up as his full responsibility to make sure he wasn't tempted to scratch or cut. But Eijun couldn't read him, always being fooled by the masks he'd put up as safety precautions, unlike Kuramochi, who could smell bullshit from him as soon as it slipped from his mouth.

"You're such an idiot, Kazuya," Kuramochi muttered, "If you needed someone to talk to or even just ramble, you should have just come to me. I'm not gonna laugh at you or tell anyone about it. You're not alone; you have friends and teammates for a reason, so stop acting like you're going to be a burden to anyone by telling us what's wrong because you're not! You're only burdening us if you lock it all up and pretend like you're happy when you're actually crumbling apart on the inside!" His voice thundered through the empty stairwell, but he spoke nothing but the truth.

Hastily rubbing his misty eyes with his sleeve, he'd glanced up and paused when he'd witnessed Kazuya actually tearing up from his words. At first, he'd thought he'd upset his friend and was ready to fumble with an apology about how it was out of line to say such things when he had no idea what the catcher was actually going through, but he'd never expected to hear the soft words, "Thank you, Youichi," come from Kazuya's mouth as he wiped at the tears that had started to leak out from his eyes.

"No problem."

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><p>After telling Kuramochi everything, he'd felt somewhat better, getting it off his chest and having someone else know about it, but by telling the shortstop, that meant he had to tell all his other teammates about it, though, and he wasn't too keen on that idea. He trusted them, yes, but he had no idea what he would do if someone - whether it was purposely or accidentally - spilled the beans to any of the reporters who came to Seido and interviewed random players about what they thought about Seido's baseball team. If word that he was a cutter got into the papers, he'd never be able to look anyone in the eye again; if his father found out about it, he'd be sntahced up from Seido - away everyone he knew and liked - and shipped off to some mental hospital for help.<p>

He shook the thoughts out of his head as he walked down the hallway of the first-years floor, thoroughly searching for Eijun in each of the half-empty classrooms he passed by. It was tempting to ask one of the first-years standing in the hallway in their groups, but he figured Eijun would either be in his classroom reading a shoujo manga or eating his makeshift lunch with Haruichi and Furuya in their classroom.

He didn't have to look any further, as one of the girls standing in the doorway of classroom he was walking by squealed with delight when she saw him, hurting his ears slightly. "Sawamura-kun, your boyfriend is wandering around the hallway looking for you!" It made him the corners of his turn up in a slight smile to hear how the first-year girls viewed their relationship in such a positive light, not caring if they were both boys or that Eijun had scored someone as handsome and intelligent as him.

Squeezing in through the narrow path the students standing in the doorway had created, he sauntered over towards the pitcher's group, which was made up of first-years who had made the first string, and noted how Eijun's face lit up with joy once he saw him, a grin forming its way on his lips. "Miyuki, you're here!" he exclaimed, golden eyes shining slightly brighter than they usually did as he neared the group. "Yeah, sorry I'm so late. I was talking to Youichi about something important." He said, pulling up a vacant chair next to Eijun's, settling down on it and trying to make himself comfortable.

"Where's your lunch at, Miyuki?" Eijun questioned, noticing how the catcher hadn't brought anything to eat for lunch with him. He was starting to worry about Kazuya's health more and more when he noticed things others may not have thought twice about. The bags and dark circles forming under his eyes, the amount of weight he seemed to be losing, his lack of appetite, and how greasy his hair looked, almost as if he hadn't washed it in awhile or didn't have the energy to bother with it.

"I'm not really hungry," He didn't think he could stomach anything down at all. He'd nearly having heaved up his breakfast, when the teacher randomly announced that they were taking a test over what they'd learned during the week, and was ushered out of the classroom to the bathroom down the hall, but nothing came up from his stomach and all he could do was stare down at his distorted reflection in the clear water of the toilet bowl. He didn't want to risk being put out of the match tomorrow on account of having some type of digestion issue. Maybe it would subside if he got a good night's rest? He had been so lost in thought, he hadn't noticed Eijun had slipped a hand into his own, intertwining their fingers together absentmindedly as if he were trying to send some positive - energy into his life.

"I'll share some of my lunch with you, alright?" Eijun hadn't bothered to wait on a response, instead, splitting his sandwich in half, hovering it in front of his boyfriend's lips impatiently, waiting for him to take even a small bite to reassure him that he wasn't sick or trying to starve himself. He grinned maliciously as he watched Kazuya give in to his stomach's loud growls, opening his mouth to allow the pitcher to stick part of the sandwich in, sinking his teeth down on the soft bread, mayonnaise, cheese, and meat, and tearing it off, slowly grinding it down into smaller bits before swallowing it. It tasted alright, but it was definitely store bought as he judged from the funky aftertaste.

"Miyuki-senpai, how are you feeling?" Asked Haruichi, sweetly, having heard from Eijun that Kazuya had been suffering from terrible allergies lately and was taking prescribed medication to treat them. The catcher blinked in surprise at the small, pink haired boy asking him a question, not expecting such concern over his health from someone that wasn't Eijun. It seemed that being in a relationship with the pitcher meant getting close to the other first-years in his social life in the process.

Eijun made him happy, but he was beginning to wonder if he made the pitcher happy in return. All he ever did was cause him to worry over his well-being and health, making him sacrifice personal time out of his own life to spend making sure he didn't try to end his own. On days off from practice, Kazuya always felt like an asshole when he watched Eijun turn down offers to go hang out with his friends in town, an apologetic smile on his lips as he insisted on them going without him. He'd often drop subtle hints to the young pitcher about him needing to get out with his friends more and have fun instead of staying cooped up on Seido's campus all day with him.

His attempts never worked; Eijun would always insist that he didn't feel like hanging out with them that day, wanting to spend more quality time with him in their room, whether it was simply watching a sappy movie or working on homework. Maybe if he asked to tag along with them, Eijun would be more willing to say yes. He'd lived in Tokyo his whole life and had seen everything there was to offer in the town, but Eijun, having grown up in the countryside, didn't get this kind of opportunity to explore this brand new world full of skyscrapers and bustling streets.

"I'm fine, just feeling a little drowsy from the medication," It wasn't the medication that was making him drowsy, it was his lack of a good night's rest that was causing it. While Eijun was asleep, snoring loudly in his ear, he'd still be up, lost in his thoughts as he stared up at the bottom of the top bunk. Falling asleep meant the nightmares would come back and he'd bolt up from his sleep, heart racing wildly in his chest, as beads of sweat trickled down his face, not to mention the sudden act of movement woke Eijun up from his rest.

There was always the feeling that something was crawling along his skin made it worse; he couldn't scratch at the scabs, no matter how bad his arms itched. He wanted to get better and prove to himself that he didn't need anyone's help at getting over the addiction. He could tough it out until the end; he was a boy, after all. And as captain, it would be a sign of weakness to have to ask for help.

"Maybe you should go lay down in the infirmary. You don't look too good, Miyuki." Eijun remarked, pushing the catcher's long bangs out of his face to test for any traces of a fever. Kazuya felt the coolness of the pitcher's hand on his forehead, wanting him to keep it there forever. Eijun retracted his hand from the catcher's forehead, after finding no evident trace of a fever, but felt guilty for not being able to soothe the older boy's pain.

Kazuya did more than enough for him, when he was feeling miserable and always found different ways to cheer him up and make him laugh, but he just couldn't do that when it wasn't him who felt depressed; he'd tell him a funny joke that had a suggestive innuendo pun in it that he'd overheard in the classroom one day or bring up an embarrassing moment that he'd caught Kuramochi in with Ryousuke, but the catcher still looked melancholy.

"I'm fine, Eijun. Just not feeling the school vibe today," He admitted, leaning back in his chair as he rubbed his face with his hands. He knew Eijun meant well at wanting him to preserve his strength for the upcoming match against Teito, but there was hardly anything he could do to help. This wasn't the pitcher's struggle to get through, it was his own. If he could dump his struggles onto someone else's shoulders, he would definitely do so if that would help him feel better about himself.

The bell signalling the end of lunch rang, and as Kazuya got up from the chair he was sitting in, Eijun grabbed onto his arm tightly, looking up at him with big, warm, golden eyes. "Hmm? What's up?" Eijun stood up slowly, getting on his tiptoes to place a kiss on the taller boy's forehead. "Take care of yourself, Bakazuya." He mumbled, a dark blush spreading across his tan cheeks as tried to avoid making direct eye contact with Kazuya.

"Will do, Bakamura." He chuckled, ruffling the pitcher's soft, brown locks as he said his goodbyes to the first-years.

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><p>Eijun couldn't concentrate in class, staring off at the clock on the wall, mind drifting elsewhere.<em> 'Every time I look at him, Miyuki just seems to look more and more miserable and I can't do shit to help him. In the mornings, his eyes are always puffy and red like he's been up crying...what should I do? It's not like I can say,"You'll feel better soon" and everything will be okay, urgh...maybe I can ask the senpais about this, as long as I don't use Miyuki's name or situation...'<em>

"Sawamura-kun, it's your turn to read the next section," the teacher sighed, exasperated with his constant dazing in her class. Eijun could be a bright student when he was focused and concentrated on the assignment, but lately, she'd noticed he seemed to be distracted by little things such as looking out the window at the scenery or up at the clock that hung right above the classroom door. She would have to keep him after class to discuss the issue privately and figure a way to solve it. His grade was taking a beating and he needed this class to be promoted to the next grade level.

Eijun's face flushed a deep red as his attention was focused back to the textbook in front of him. What page were they on again? What section was he supposed to read? Desperately, he glanced over to where Haruno was sitting over by the window, hoping she could offer assistance. It seemed that fate was on his side, as she turned her textbook to where he could see it and tapped her finger on the biggest paragraph on the whole page.

As he stood up from his seat, he took in a deep breath to fill up his lungs, before he read the section out loud, feeling awkward as all eyes in the classroom were glued on him. Leave it to the teacher to have him read the depressing paragraph about death and destruction; he had a feeling she didn't like him very much and this was enough proof for him; he felt it was unfair that he was reading twice the amount of words the other students before him had read. As he read it out loud to the class, he could almost relate it to how Kazuya must feel everyday; low and breaking apart at the seams. Feeling like a tornado was twisting around inside of his head and destroying his positive thoughts in the process.

When his turn to read was over, Eijun sat down, placing the textbook back on the desk before he grabbed his pencil to draw brackets around the paragraph. This one reminded him of Kazuya, but was there one that would describe how he felt about it all? What exactly did he feel anyways? What did he mean when he told Kazuya that he loved him that summer evening in the bullpen? After all, the catcher had never once verbally told him that he loved him...

The bell signalling the end of class rang, and the sound of multiple chairs scratching the floor were heard in the classroom as the students gathered their belongings up to take home with them in their schoolbags. As Eijun was about to gather up his things to head back to the dorm and get changed for

practice, the teacher told him to stay behind.

"Sawamura-kun, you've been dazing off in class, and it's going to hurt your grade if you continue," He knew that his attention span was going to reflect poorly on his grade when they received their report cards, but with his constant worrying about Kazuya, it was becoming harder for him to pay close attention in class. He supposed he could tell her the truth about his relationship stressing him out, but the words wouldn't form correctly in his mouth. "I'm just...really stressed out with school, baseball, and my personal life all mixing together. I'll be more productive in class, though, I promise!" Eijun flashed her a smile, trying to prove that he could balance them all out in due time.

"Hahaha, what's this about?" Eijun jumped at the sound of Kazuya's voice echoed in the empty classroom, the sound of it bouncing off the walls and going straight into his ears. He wasn't sure whether to be relieved that Kazuya was here or paranoid of the teacher suspecting that the source of his problems and stress were from the bespectacled boy who'd just arrived moments ago.

"Well, if it isn't captain Miyuki-kun himself. You seem to be in good spirits today. So tell me, what's a second-year like you doing on the first-years floor?" Eijun was astounded by how well Kazuya seemed to be known around the school by both students and faculty members. But they didn't know about the real boy behind the front he put up, they just knew the fake. And that was how Kazuya envisioned it to be.

"I came to get Eijun, of course~" Kazuya's voice was like icing on a cake; it was sweet and the best part of the pastry, but once the icing was all gone, all you were left with was the cake with a colorful stain on top of it from where the icing had been licked off. It was only there for simple decoration, but once removed, it rendered the pastry to be rather bland to look at and therefore would become unappetizing in the eyes of the beholder.

The teacher seemed to swoon for the icing on the cake, not thinking twice about how Kazuya looked appearance-wise, just as long as his tone was cheery, they'd fall for it without ever thinking that they were being fooled by how good the catcher strung his words together with the sickeningly, sugary tone he used to manipulate people.

"Since you're the captain, it should be in your best interest to take your teammates, especially the younger ones, into consideration more often," She sighed, running her fingers through her thick, brown hair in an exasperated manner. Kazuya seemed puzzled at the statement, turning to Eijun for an explanation looking like a little, lost puppy; though, Eijun could only shrug his shoulders in uncertainty with a look of confusion on his own face.

"Miyuki-kun, you're a smart kid; I've had you in my class last year, for crying out loud, you should be able to decipher what I said without having to turn to Sawamura-kun for help." Her patience was growing thin and her tone was just barely balancing on friendly, ready to lean over into the snappy area at any given moment. Kazuya could only stand there dumbfounded, feeling the weight of her words come crashing down on his shoulders, adding excess baggage onto them in the process. He felt so hopeless and humiliated as he stood in front of his old teacher with a stiff face and wandering eyes, trying to focus on anything but her face.

_'Miyuki doesn't look too good...should I intervene and get him out of there before he completely falls apart? Probably...'_ Taking a quick breath, Eijun gave Kazuya a quick pat on the back as a physical reassurance that he was still there to back him up and wasn't going to let him embarrass himself any further with the conversation.

"I've been slacking off, but I promise I'll do better! And also, Miyuki-senpai, shouldn't we get going? Coach will be mad if we're late for practice." Grabbing Kazuya's arm, he tugged on it slightly to get the taller boy to snap out of the daze he was in and move his feet so he wouldn't fall over if Eijun tugged on his arm any harder.

Eijun lead the way down the hallway, trying not to move too fast so Kazuya could keep up, but occasionally quickening his pace so they would be out of earshot from the classroom. As they neared the empty stairwell, Eijun paused in his step, glancing back at Kazuya's face and feeling his heart crumble inside of his chest at how despondent the catcher looked.

"Miyuki..." His voice was soft and comforting to the other's ears, almost breaking the dam that held back the flood in the light brown eyes of the boy currently standing in front of him, crumbling away little by little as each day passed by and all he could was stand by and watch it all unfold around him like he was a bystander.

Eijun hated seeing this hopeless side of Kazuya; it wasn't the boy he admired and allowed himself to get to know the different sides of. Closing off the space between them, he stood on his tiptoes, wrapping his arms around the catcher's neck, resting his head on the taller boy's chest, shutting his mouth of saying any words that wouldn't help the situation; all Kazuya needed was to know that he was there for him and that he wasn't going to let him suffer through this all by himself.

Kazuya didn't hesitate to reciprocate by wrapping his own arms around Eijun's waist tightly, letting his head fall on the pitcher's left shoulder as he choked back a sob that tried to escape from the back of his throat. He couldn't cry in front of Eijun; he didn't want to look like a fool in front of the person he gave his heart to.

Eijun reached a hand up to run his fingers through the catcher's soft, brown locks, noting it seemed to be greasy and in need of a good wash, but that didn't matter to him. All that mattered to him was making sure he could get Kazuya to smile for him like he'd done so many nights ago when they'd had that pillow fight in the catcher's room. He wanted him to smile like he had nothing to worry about and reassure him that he was still the same guy who influenced him to become apart of Seido's baseball team the day he'd gone to visit, when he was unsure of what to expect, and the moment they'd met one another on the field, something inside the both of them sparked, like they were destined to meet one another.

"I can't promise you that I'll be able to solve all your problems, but...you won't have to face them alone. You'll always have me and I'm not gonna ever leave your side...and even when you're off to college, I'm still gonna visit you every single day just to annoy you and hang out with you, no matter how far you are from me...and when I graduate from here, I'm gonna join the same school as you, so we can be a battery again!" Eijun confided, voice cracking as big tears poured down his face, snot running out from his nose, as he held Kazuya closer to him, afraid of letting him go and having him fly far away from him like he was a bird that was returning to the wilderness to be with it's own kind.

And if Kazuya was a bird, he could flap his wings in a mad attempt to be set free, furiously peck at his body, and squawk as loudly in his ear all he wanted, but there was no way he was ever going to be free from him. Even if he managed to escape, the pitcher would track his trail down to the ends of the earth and back, no matter how long it took or where it would take the two of them.

Whether they were a battery, a couple, or merely friends, there was no changing Eijun's thoughts about him; he'd find new ways to enchant him and make him want to live another day, no matter how rough life got for him, he had something to live for and that something was irreplaceable.

* * *

><p>Eijun took in a deep breath as he opened the door to his old room, having been invited by Kuramochi and Zono to hang out with the rest of the first-string for a change, instead of hoarding Kazuya all to himself. He was greeted with the sight of familiar faces that belonged to members of the first-string, whose bodies were sprawled out along the room, some doing homework or playing a game against Kuramochi and Haruichi. He chose to sit next to Kazuya, who'd surprisingly jumped all over the opportunity once Kuramochi brought it up at the dinner table.<p>

"I was wondering when you were going to show up," Kazuya remarked, a tired grin plastered on his face as Eijun sat down next to him on the floor, curling up next to his side like how a house cat would do with it's owner on a plush sofa. "Oh, shut up. You're lucky I bothered to even come here; I have homework that needs to be done, ya know?" Eijun retorted with a scoff, causing the catcher to let out a small chuckle as he leaned his head on the pitcher's shoulder.

"You wouldn't leave me alone; you nearly flooded the hallway screaming at me about how you were gonna stalk me until the day I died, huhu." Eijun felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment as he thought back to how emotional he'd been in the hallway a few hours ago with Kazuya, trying to stay strong for the older boy's sake, but failing to do so.

He'd never actually seen the catcher cry before, feeling as though he was the biggest asshole ever to wish he could see Kazuya let his emotions pour out and allow him to provide emotional support for when things got too hard to handle, but that was irrational thinking; the catcher never let any of his repressed emotions show, as it would be a sign of absolute weakness as Seido's captain.

"Shut up, Miyuki..." Eijun sighed, wrapping an arm around the catcher's waist and pulling him closer to his own body, ignoring how Kazuya's body tensed up as he touched him, as it was quite a common reaction, even when he'd cling on to his waist at night; slowly, he'd start to relax in Eijun's hold, knowing that he was fine and that the pitcher was only trying to make him feel comfortable. The bullying from middle school made him weary of being held or touched around his waist, sending distress signals to his brain, but Eijun made him feel safe. He'd pull him closer, never working his hand any further downwards.

Nobody had anything to comment on, minding their own business to get their schoolwork done. It was peaceful, surprisingly, with the video game volume being the only thing blasting through the small, semi-crowded room, drowning out the soft conversations that floated through the room. How Furuya could nap through the loud sound effects was a mystery itself altogether. The ace pitcher was a heavy sleeper when practice was rough on them, and could probably sleep through a typhoon and then wake up the next day in a field on the outskirts of town, wondering where everybody went.

The peace was broken by the sound of someone pounding on the door with all their might, breaking the conversations between the boys in the room, everyone glanced over at Kuramochi sitting in front of the TV set to get the door and end the loud noise, due to it being his room. With a twitch of his eyebrows, he paused the game, snapping out a,"Door's unlocked, fucking asshole!" before un-pausing the game reverting his attention back to the screen. The door opened with a squeak of the hinges, and a small, familiar, dark chuckle emitted through the room.

"Is that any way to greet your boyfriend that hasn't seen in three days, _You-i-chi_?" Ryousuke stood in the doorway of the shortstop's room, a full, plastic bag from a local convenience store in his hands, with a cocky, yet malicious, smile plastered on his face. They hardly found time to be together, due to the strict baseball and school schedule Kuramochi was on and Ryousuke studying for exams, doing homework, and applying for colleges. But those things didn't matter at the moment; for now, it was time to make-up for all the lost time.

The grin that spread across Kuramochi's face was so wide, Eijun internally feared for his senpai's face would rip in half in some freak smiling incident. But then again, if smiling that wide was worth the pain and facial destruction for Kuramochi, he shouldn't question it; whenever Kazuya would praise him, he'd get so giddy from the appreciation and couldn't help but beam at the catcher who would hold back a grin of his own, but often failed and ended up laughing.

The ex-second baseman strolled over to where Kuramochi sat in front of the controller, setting the plastic bag aside as he made room for himself on the shortstop's lap, blocking his view of the TV screen. Kuramochi's smile faltered as he twisted his body to try and see around the smaller male, but Ryousuke mimicked his every movement, blocking his way with his head every time the shortstop tried to peer around him.

"Ryou-san..." Kuramochi groaned, wanting to see the screen to finish the level he was on, but Ryousuke wasn't going to let him have his way. Reaching behind him, he tugged the controller out of his boyfriend's hands and into his own smaller ones.

"Looks like you're a total pushover, Youichi." Kazuya chided with a smirk on his face. A few of the boys laughed at the remark, but Kuramochi shrugged it off with a slight laugh, knowing he was fully smitten by the smaller, older boy on his lap to think up a rebuttal.

Eijun couldn't place the emotion, but it felt like he was being stabbed in the gut with a bunch of needles. The feeling would get sharper and physically hurt him more whenever he saw a couple doing normal, romantic things like when he saw Furuya brush Haruichi's long bangs out of his face to give the smaller boy's forehead a gentle kiss, and how the cherry blush would spread across his best friend's face as he giggled at the sweet action.

Sometimes when practice ended, he'd see Kanemaru and Toujou picking up balls together, when it was their turn to help the managers clean up the field, and their hands would brush against the others briefly and they'd both pause to stare at each other, faces contorted in a mixture of embarrassment and bashfulness; Kanemaru's face would turn blotchy red at the light contact and turn his head to look away at something else on the field, and Toujou would laugh it off with cheeks dusted a slight pink as he continued picking up the remainder of the balls.

It came back just as sharp and painful as he remembered, when he saw the old Iron Wall together again, even if what they seemed to think was just a casual hangout, it still stung worse than any bee sting he'd ever gotten running around the corn fields of the Nagano countryside with his old friends. Maybe he was just jealous that they weren't worried about the future or if the other was doing alright? He had no right to be jealous, though, he knew that being Kazuya's boyfriend meant he'd have to support him and learn not to be too pushy when he was feeling tired or obnoxiously needy when he detached himself from others, including him.

Turning his head to look at Kazuya, he couldn't help but feel that the smile he was wearing was fake, almost as if he were uncomfortable in the current situation. Retracting his arm from the catcher's waist, Eijun shifted away from him slightly, worried that he was making the catcher feel uncomfortable in front of their other teammates.

Sensing the lack of Eijun's warmth beside him, Kazuya blinked in confusion, letting his hand roam around the carpeted floor for where the pitcher might have moved. The anxiety was piling up as his hand was only met with the rough carpeted floor. He wondered how he must look at the moment, with his hand moving across the floor like an absolute retard, looking around for someone who must have been a mere five inches away from him.

He could feel his chest tighten at the thought of Eijun leaving him behind, breath hitched in his throat as the lump in his throat grew bigger, the sound in the room diminishing

At long last, his hand grazed the soft, cotton material of Eijun's old, gray, faded baseball t-shirt. It was light enough that the pitcher didn't notice anything, but as Kazuya grasped it, his fingers curling around the soft material firmly, Eijun felt like a downright asshole for making the catcher worry about where he was and almost causing him to have a slight breakdown in front of the others.

Placing a hand on Kazuya's fist, he gently pried the fingers off of his shirt, taking the larger, calloused hand into his own and squeezing it tightly to reassure the other that he was still there and hadn't left his side. He wondered, if it was vice versa, would the catcher do this same method to calm him down or would he make a snarky remark about it?

"It's okay, I'm here for you," Eijun murmured so only the catcher could hear him, giving the larger hand in his own an extra squeeze, noting how quiet Kazuya had suddenly become. He wasn't doing much for the older boy, other than breaking him apart without the intention to.

Kuramochi seemed to have a sixth sense for detecting problems in other people, and it wasn't a coincidence that he noticed how the two misfits sitting over in the corner seeming to be dejected from the rest of the group. It wasn't good for either of them, especially Kazuya, to stay in the darkness while everyone else was enjoying the light. He was going to force them to join the group, even if he had to use force to keep them in place.

"Hey, Kazuya, come with me to go buy drinks for everyone, will ya?" As he was calling over his shoulder to the moody catcher, he could feel the glare Ryousuke was giving him as he referred to the catcher by his first name, but he'd fill the smaller one in on everything after he'd kicked everybody out when curfew was about to be in effect. Leaning in towards his boyfriend's ear, Kuramochi mumbled, "I'll fill you in on everything later," before giving the ex-baseman a slight peck on the cheek to keep his jealousy in tact as he slid the smaller off his lap with ease before standing up and stretching his sore limbs.

Sauntering over to where the catcher was sitting in the corner of the room, he jabbed his thumb over in the direction of the door, staring Kazuya down until the other's eyes began to water behind his glasses from lack of blinking. With a sigh, he reluctantly let go of the pitcher's sweaty hand, standing up slowly onto his feet and shuffled towards the door.

As he followed the shortstop out of the dorm and into the cool, autumn night, he had a distinct thought of what they were doing out here and it didn't include fetching drinks for the other members. He followed Kuramochi further down from the dorm building, listening to the sirens of an ambulance off in the distance of the city, shuddering slightly from the thought of ever having to ride in the back of one of those vehicles.

"Why haven't you told Chris-senpai about this?" Kuramochi's back was still turned to him as he continued walking a steady pace, unaffected by the cool breeze, heading in no general direction. He wasn't sure he got the whole gist of the catcher's situation, noting how worn down he seemed nowadays as the captain, there was something more to Kazuya than he was letting on and Kuramochi was going to peel each the layers the catcher put up until he finally got an admission of there being something else bothering his friend.

"Youichi, please..." Kazuya hated using such a feeble, pleading tone with the shortstop, as it made him feel inferior to the other. He wasn't in the greatest of moods either, wanting to go back to his room and hide underneath the bed covers, hoping he'd be able to fall and stay asleep until the morning alarm woke him up. But that would be admitting defeat and not tackling any of his problems in hopes of finding a solution to end them all.

"Don't give me the crap, Kazuya. Something is up with you and I need to know what it is, otherwise, I can't help you. I know I'm not Sawamura or a therapist that's skilled with this shit, but just let me help you for once, you're going to break down and eventually hurt yourself if you keep going like this." Kuramochi was knocking away the walls he'd built to keep the intruders out, but the way the shortstop was giving it his all to help him when he kept shoving him away, it made him want to let the other boy in, just like he'd done with Eijun.

Kazuya could only stare down at his shoes at his brain fumbled around with words as he tried to form a coherent sentence. It was harder to do with his friend than it was with Eijun, since Kuramochi was someone he saw in his classes everyday at school and also someone he trusted enough to let in on his secret.

"Where do you want me to begin?" His voice was hardly above a whisper as he tried to round up his scattered, jumbled thoughts. He wasn't very good at delivering answers without a question, so the responsibility fell upon Kuramochi shoulders to ask the right questions that wouldn't cause any painful memories to resurface.

"Let's just start off with the one I asked you before," Kuramochi motioned for them to sit on the bench in the courtyard, the streetlights flickering on, casting a bright, yellow glow as the two of them settled on the wooden bench.

"Alright, let's begin with the story-telling," Kazuya chided, a slight chuckle escaping his lips as he tried to make the tense situation humorous by cracking a joke.

* * *

><p><span><strong>One Year Ago<strong>

* * *

><p>Kazuya had been feeling slightly under the weather the past few days, getting lightheaded upon standing from his chair had caused his vision to fuzzy up, the world spinning around in his head, dizzying him up, as he lost his balance and proceeded to crash face first on to the cool, tiled floor of the classroom. There had been lots of screaming and the intensity of the bright, classroom lights hurt his head as he was extracted from the floor.<p>

He vaguely recalled waking up in a blurry, bright, white office, assuming it was the school infirmary, with a splitting headache. "Miyuki-kun, how do you feel?" The nurse had rushed over to his side, once she figured he was awake, with a glass of water and a white bottle presumably filled with pills bigger than an average Tylenol.

"I don't feel entirely too good...I feel like my head's splitting apart and I can't breathe through my nostrils," He'd admitted, raising an arm to shield his eyes from the blinding light above his head. He had wanted to curl up under the covers and go back to sleep to soothe the pain. As if it were an everyday occurrence, the nurse placed the glass of water and bottle of pills down on the bedside table before scurrying off to flip the light switch, succumbing the room to a dimmer setting.

"I've informed Takashima-san about your fainting spell and she's scheduled you a doctor's appointment to see if anything else is wrong with you," She explained in simplicity as she pulled the white curtain around his bed to give him a sense of privacy. "She said she'll come check upon you later, so for now, just rest up and if you need anything, just call." She sauntered off, heels clicking against the floor with each step she took until he could no longer hear them within his earshot.

Classes were most likely still in session, the hallways were too quiet for it to be the end of the school day. At least when school ended he wouldn't have to go to baseball practice, though, he would still have to return to his God awful dorm room he shared with the monstrous Azuma. The slugger snored louder than a gorilla and would berate him with his voice literally booming off the paper-thin walls of the dorm. Maybe once he felt better, he could text Kuramochi and ask if he could spend the night in his dorm.

The one thing that brought him some sort of solitude was thinking about the southpaw named Sawamura whose pitches he'd caught a month ago, never forgetting about the wondrous, golden-eyed boy with a smile that could light up an entire town and a voice that was slightly rough on the edges but still sounded as sweet as honey to his ears the first time he'd heard it, even if it was a directed insult towards Azuma who had been harassing poor Kawakami. Curse him and his forgetfulness for not asking the boy for his damn number before he had left to go back to Nagano or even contact information. He was stuck in a daydream where the southpaw was his pitcher and he was the catcher, taking the world by storm with their impenetrable battery, and taking each championship title for their team. Ah, if only dreams could be mended into reality.

Dozing off wasn't happening; his head was still pounding and no amount of darkness he'd submerged his face into could cease it. Rolling onto his stomach, Kazuya let out a faint groan as he stuffed his face into the welcoming, soft, white pillow. He wasn't anywhere close to drifting off into slumber when he heard heavy footsteps slapping against the tiled floor of the infirmary which he presumed belonged to a male nurse.

He heard the curtain slide apart with a slight clack and the thudding footsteps grew near his bed. The sound of the metal stool legs scraping across the floor were prominent that the intruder had intended to stay for awhile. A light jab to his head was enough to aggravate him in his condition, raising his head up from the soft pillow to send a menacing glare to the other inside the infirmary with him.

"Woah, you look awful..." Ah, it was only Kuramochi. He shared a class with the shortstop and sat behind him, often having to poke him with the back of his pencil to keep him focused in class or to wake him up when he'd dozed off while resting his head on his palm. Sometimes, the shortstop would get riled up if he continued to pester him by slightly moving the desk forward or unknowingly hitting the back of his chair with his foot when he stretched out his long legs. It mostly ended up with Kuramochi lashing out at him with eyes ablaze with rage, face heated red and a snarl evident on his lips.

He'd yell insults at the catcher that ranged from childish, witty ones that he would easily brush off with a snicker to vicious, derogatory remarks that stung in his heart and left him speechless at how heartless the boy could be when he was enraged.

"What do you want?" Kazuya huffed, smothering his face back in the pillow once again, blocking out the intense light that enhanced his severe headache. He could hear Kuramochi let out a quick breath from his mouth, almost as if he were about to enter the fighting ring. "The least you could do is thank me for carrying you here," His eyebrows twitched in frustration, wanting to smack the catcher upside the head of his lack of respect.

"That was you, huh? Well...I'll give you my gratitude if you let me sleep over in your dorm. Azuma-san is going to give me hell, if I go back to my room and do nothing but sleep," the pillow muffled his voice as he agonized over having to go back to the dorm he shared with the monstrous slugger who often forgot to tone down his voice, even after it was past bedtime.

"I'll have to run it by with my roommates, but I think they'll be alright with you staying with us just as long as you take the empty bunk underneath mine," Kuramochi mumbled as his fingers hastily tapped each button on his phone's screen, sending two separate messages to the senpais he roomed with, hearing back from both of them almost instantly. "They said you can stay with us," The impish look the shortstop gave him as he turned his face to peer over at him couldn't be anything good. He was up to something.

"Think you can get the nurse to let you out of here? We'll head to your dorm, gather your crap, and then we'll hike back down to mine and lounge around in there until it's time for dinner." Kuramochi was a master of plotting, but Kazuya wasn't sure the plan would fly with the shortstop's field partner, Ryousuke. The second-year was small and gentle-faced, but it hide his sharp, cynical tongue, fooling the first-years who dared to cross him because of his small structure.

"And what will Kominato-senpai think of you skipping practice, hmm? Aren't you madly infatuated with him and would do anything to please him; even if he ordered you to lick his cleats until they appeared brand new?" Kazuya taunted him, noting how the shortstop didn't even reconsider his plan upon hearing his words. Rather, he seemed keen on whatever punishment the second baseman could dish out on him. All Kazuya could think of was how much of a masochist the shortstop was.

Their conversation was cut short when the clack of heels against the floor sounded closer to them, a familiar voice calling out, "Miyuki-kun, are you awake?" Takashima's voice was faint, almost as if she weren't sure if she should speak any louder in fear of waking him up. Propping himself up by using his elbows to support himself, Kazuya gradually sat up, motioning for Kuramochi to hand him his glasses from the bedside table.

"Ah, come in, Rei-chan," Kazuya called out to her as he adjusted the glasses on his face, ignoring the pounding in his head, forcing a smile on his face when the curtain was pushed aside, Takashima stepping in, wearing an expression that deemed she'd been worrying about him. "Ah, Kuramochi-kun, that was very heroic of you for carrying him all the way down here. I'm sure it must have been difficult for you." Kuramochi was not only a sucker for Ryousuke, he seemed to pull out a completely different character as soon as Takashima entered the room.

"Not at all, Takashima-san. I was just as surprised as the rest of the class when Miyuki suddenly fainted; so, I volunteered to bring him to the infirmary and stay with him after classes ended." Kazuya could feel the bile protruding in his throat as he heard the shortstop speaking to her with such respect and exaggerating the truth - or rather, he thought the other was blowing it out of proportion; he was swinging in and out of consciousness at the time, due to hitting his head.

Takashima seemed to buy it, though, letting a deep sigh escape her lips in relief that he was alright. "Miyuki-kun, coach said you can take the day off, and I'm going to schedule you a doctor's appointment for tomorrow, but I need permission from a parent or guardian in order to do so." Kazuya could feel a lump on his throat growing bigger, as the two other people in the room pinned him down with their inquisitive gazes. Takashima's gaze was impatient, wanting to phone the doctor and schedule his appointment as soon as she could, while Kuramochi's was almost pitying him for casting his gaze down at his hands clenched in the blanket.

"It says on your personal records that your parents are divorced, but there isn't a number for either one of them," Kazuya felt his face heat up in mortification of the fact that he was going to have to inform her about his family situation. "Rei-chan, my mom died when I was seven, so you won't have a number for her...and my dad doesn't own a home phone because he works most of the day." He explained to her, unable to look her in the eye out of sheer embarrassment. Takashima was smarter than him, though, adjusting her glasses as if this was all common to her.

"Miyuki-kun, since your father is a busy man, surely he would have a cellphone on him, right?" Her eyes were sending sharp signals to comply or things wouldn't look bright for his next two years at Seido. Gulping, he gradually nodded his head, taken aback by the severe pain that seemed to spread across his entire forehead due to the bobbing movement. Slowly massaging his temples, Kazuya caved in,"I don't know it by heart, but his number's stored in my phone, but I left it in my room to charge..."

Kuramochi flung up from the stool he'd been sitting on, causing the other two to glance up at him in question of the action. "I can go get your stuff for you, if you want," He offered with a flustered smile, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "You did say you wanted to spend the night in my room, so I'll just go get your things and when your headache is gone, you can just come meet me there." The shortstop held out his hand as a sign that he should hand over the keys to his room, though, as Kazuya dug through the pockets of his uniform pants, he felt an embarrassed flush creep up along the back of his neck as the realization that he had left his keys behind in his room when getting ready for school that morning.

"Ah, it seems like I left them in the pocket of my sweatpants," He mumbled, his mood taking a downwards slope as he thought of the only other person who had a set of keys to the room, but that person wasn't someone any of the first-years wanted to walk up too and ask for something that wasn't baseball related. He roomed with the older slugger and despised every minute of it; Azuma was demanding and his weight kept accumulating as he snuck junk food into the dorm room and proceeded to eat it during the middle of the night. Kazuya wondered if the third year even considered himself to be at an unhealthy size for a baseball player, but never questioned it, fearing he'd get locked out of the room again.

"No problem~ I'll just go get the keys from Azuma-san then!" Kuramochi was ruthless, he thought. He was like a lovesick puppy in front of Ryousuke, had freakish kinks and fetishes, but he must have balls of steels to casually say he was going to get the keys from Azuma, of all people. "Kuramochi, you don't have to - fuck..." He'd moved his head too fast to the right, the headache worsening in the process. While Takashima was fussing over him, nearly shoving an advil down his throat, Kuramochi had slipped out of the room unnoticed.

"Miyuki-kun, don't be so rash," She scolded, shaking her head slightly, taking the vacant stool the shortstop had been occupying moments before. Crossing one long leg over the other, she pushed his bangs back out of his face, lips pursed as she noted the warmth coming from it. "Hmm...you're a little warm, so I think it's best we get you some cold medicine." The last time he took cold medicine was when he was in his first year of middle school and his father had forced him to stay in bed because of a bad cold he'd gotten from Mei when he was sick, and the medicine in the cabinet they had was the thick, cherry flavored syrup and he despised the taste of it; cherries definitely didn't taste like an expired mouth-wash.

He hadn't expected the shortstop to come back so soon with his cell-phone and keys in hand, wearing a wide grin in the process. "Here's your stuff," He could only sit there and blink in wonder about how Kuramochi was able to persuade Azuma to give him the keys to his room.

"Ryou-san was a big help; he asked Azuma-san if he could borrow something but needed the keys and Azuma-san just handed them over. He was too busy running laps around the field to care about what Ryou-san wanted to "borrow", so he literally just took them out of his pocket and handed them over." Oh, that explained how he was able to get the keys. Kuramochi was only a first-year, yet he held some type of value in Ryousuke's eyes, whether the pink-haired second-baseman reciprocated the same feelings as the shortstop did for him. If only he could have been on a friendly level with Chris; the older catcher had made no attempts to be sociable with him, except for the time when he'd had an awful case of the stomach bug and had been in and out of the boys bathroom multiple times, stomach cramping and feeling like he was never going to get any better; Chris had given him some advice by telling him to drink lots of water in order to stay hydrated, but that had been all.

"On second thought, maybe it's better that we head straight to my room so you can lay down; you can just text me what you need and I'll store it in your travel bag." Kuramochi suggested, carefully observing how flushed his face looked. "Sounds good to me, Kuramochi." His head felt like it was splitting as he slid the covers off of his body, swinging his feet over the side, cringing slightly as the pain worsened. "Just lean on me, Miyuki, and I promise that I'll try my best not to drop you." Kuramochi murmured, as he helped Kazuya onto his feet, helping him sling his arm around his shoulder to keep him from face-planting the floor again.

"Ahaha, you better not, or you'll never get that date with Kominato-senpai~" He'd tried to crack a joke to ease the awkward situation they'd found themselves placed in, the short stop letting out a slight snort at his joke. "Like that would ever happen..." For once, he almost wished he could take back what he'd said to Kuramochi, as he was in a similar situation himself where his crush was just a hopeless dream he'd never expect to come true. At least Kuramochi had somewhat of a shot with Ryousuke; Sawamura didn't even live in Tokyo, nor had they bothered to exchange phone numbers or email addresses in hopes of keeping in touch.

* * *

><p>"Alright, I'm about to head up to your room and get your stuff, so just text me what you want me to pack up and bring down here." Kuramochi had the catcher's empty travel bag slung around his shoulder, a worried expression stretched out on his face from his position next to the bottom bunk Kazuya occupied. "I will, don't worry," He groaned, wanting to bury his face into the soft pillow and block out the world around him.<p>

"Alright, don't be such a dick. If Masuko-san comes back, don't worry about him asking you anything, he already knows you're staying with us for awhile." Another groan came from him. "Just go already..." He could almost see the smirk on the shortstop's face as he drove the real Miyuki Kazuya out of hiding. "There's the arrogant catcher; I thought you were dead." Kuramochi laughed as he exited the room, having some humanity to shut the door behind him softly, instead of slamming it shut and making him suffer.

He appreciated the concern from his friend, but there were bigger problems that he hadn't the courage to face or tell anyone about. If he didn't scratch at the marks he'd made on his arms, it felt as if ants were marching up and down his skin, irritating his concentration as he tried to ignore the invisible ants and focus on other things, but in the end, he always gave in to the urge and locked himself up away from the world, seated on the cold floor in a stall in the boys bathroom, blood trickling out of the self-made wounds, salty tears trailing down his face, hand holding the bloodied razor, fingers stained red and curled around it like it was a lifeline. It was his lifeline; the razor was the only thing that helped him keep his grip on reality and from losing his mind to the darkness eating away at the little sunshine that was left shining in his bleary life.

Maybe Seido wasn't the right place for him to be; he should have gone to Inashiro with Mei, like everyone in his life had wanted and expected of him. Mei had been his best friend for the three years that they were in middle school, and though they had their petty fights and disagreements with one another, he actually felt somewhat alive being with the blond southpaw then he did at this very moment. If he'd gone to Inashiro, he'd be closer to Koshien; he'd be with other baseball players at his high level; he'd still be friends with Mei, and maybe, just maybe, his dad wouldn't berate him as often as he did if he'd chosen the other school.

* * *

><p>"Miyuki-kun, I'm sorry that I'm not able to go with you to your appointment, but Chris-kun is going to get his shoulder examined to see when he can start physical therapy, so you can just ride with him and his father." Takashima had somehow been roped up with looking over baseball applications to see who of the hundreds of boys who applied would make a good addition to the team. He'd been stuck having to wait with Chris in the school office for his father to show up to take them to their appointments, and all he could think of was how awkward it was to be seated next to the older catcher, whom he hadn't spoken to in awhile.<p>

"How are you feeling?" Chris' gruff voice caused him to slightly jump in his chair, snapping him out of his thoughts. Turning to look towards his senpai, he shrugged his shoulders to answer the question. He still felt like crap, but at least the painful headache had subsided. "I heard that you collapsed in your classroom yesterday. What happened?" He felt his stomach flip as Chris' cold eyes looked him over, probably wondering why he was wearing a red hoodie and dark jeans when the weather hadn't even started to cool down.

"Um...I got really dizzy when I stood up, my vision blacked out, and I hit the floor," He'd tried to fill in the blanks, using what he'd heard from Kuramochi, but it was a lost cause; Chris was just being polite, he supposed. He had taken the starting catcher sort from him, without a fair fight, so Chris had every right to hate him for that, though, he still wished he could have a lengthy conversation with him, like how Kuramochi could with Ryousuke or Maezono with Jun.

A heavy silence befell upon them as he tried to shift his chair away from Chris, noting the depressing aura emitting from the second-year wasn't going to help him in overcoming his own depression. He wanted to talk to Chris about what he was going through, but he didn't want to cause the other catcher anymore problems in his life; Chris had his injury to worry about, his father paying expensive medical bills just for him to be able to play baseball again, and school; he couldn't add to the list of problems, just because he was a boy who had trouble expressing how he felt with his words and took it out on his own skin.

"I heard from Tanba that Kuramochi carried you all the way to the infirmary. Is that true?" He nodded his head, fingers fidgeting with the strings of his hoodie, avoiding Chris' watchful gaze as he kept his own down towards his feet. "Miyuki, are you okay?" Chris asked him, sounding concerned for his health, for once. He'd been asked that question far too many times before, and the answer was simple. "I'm fine, senpai~" The fake smile that he'd mastered over the time he'd spent at Seido plastered on his lips, eyes focused directly on the target he was lying through his teeth to.

_'Don't worry about me, senpai. I'm nobody special...'_

* * *

><p>"You must be Miyuki-kun, right?" The doctor asked, as he pulled on the clear, latex gloves on his hands. Kazuya sat on the examination table in just his boxers, face reddened in embarrassment, goosebumps lingering along his skin from the cold air in the room. He never liked doctors; they reminded too much of death and it all traced back to losing his mother at the tender age of seven. He'd never understood why she'd get a divorce from his father; in the pictures he had seen in the old scrapbook, and ended up packing and taking with him to Seido, they seemed quite content with one another; almost picturesque, but then he came along and destroyed their marriage by causing his mom to get very sick when she had been pregnant with him.<p>

"Takashima-san told me you've been experiencing some health problems," The doctor wrapped the blood pressure cuff around his arm, telling him to relax, squeezing it around his arm to check if his blood pressure was alright. "Miyuki-kun, you need to relax," Easier said than done, he'd thought to himself as he took a deep breath in, hoping it was just his nerves acting up that caused his blood pressure to be so high.

"Hmm...we'll come back to checking your blood pressure later, let's move on to checking your blood sugar," Internally, he groaned to himself; he wanted the doctor to hurry up with the examination so he could leave. The slight prick in his finger caused him to wince, the beep of the portable machine indicating that it had a reading.

"Blood sugar is fine," The doctor murmured, pulling the strip out of the machine and tossing it into the trashcan. "I'll get you a bandage for your finger," The doctor walked across the room towards the medicine cabinet, opening it up and pulling out a box of bandages. Grabbing one, he put the box back on the shelf, closing the cabinet door before strolling back over towards him.

"Do you own a cat?" Leave it to the doctor to call out the elephant in the room. "No, I live in the dorms at school, so no pets are allowed." He was growing paranoid as the doctor examined the self-inflicted wounds on his arms, hoping the subject would be dropped. "Is that so? I think that your baseball coach should learn about your bad habit. I'll need to take pictures of your arms for your coach to see, but only if you're alright with it."

"Do what you must..." His secret had been found out. The one he'd tried so hard to cover up with long sleeves and trying to keep others from knowing the details of his private life. If he was on his best behavior at school, maybe he could bypass having someone try to counsel him.

His life wasn't worth the struggle of having to get up everyday and look at the ugly scars he'd created; his father was an asshole who would disown him once he found out he was gay, and he had no one to talk too about how insecure he was about his sexuality - Kuramochi might hear him out, but he'd doubt it; they weren't that close to each other just yet and there's no way he could ever talk to Chris about it.

_'It's stupid of me to even think, but...I wonder what Eijun's doing.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Present Day <strong>

* * *

><p>"Eijun-kun, that's not fair! You cheated!" Haruichi pouted as he put the last finger he'd had up down, all while the pitcher smirked at him from his spot on the bed next to Furuya, who'd been out a few rounds ago. "How is it cheating, Harucchi? It's true that I haven't had my first kiss yet." The surprised look from his best friend caused his smirk to grow even bigger; Kazuya must be rubbing off on him.<p>

"I'm surprised that you and Miyuki-senpai haven't kissed yet," Haruichi was astounded that the couple hadn't kissed yet; Eijun wouldn't lie to him about not having a first kiss just yet, not even ashamed of it, so he shouldn't question the relationship; Eijun seemed to be happy with taking things slow and steady with Miyuki and when asked what he liked about the relationship, he'd be hard to shut up as he grinned at the questioner as he told them only positive things about it; how Kazuya made him feel like he was the most important person in the world and how the relationship was going at a very pleasant pace, as Kazuya was not rushing him into doing anything he wasn't comfortable doing.

"Me and Miyuki are taking our relationship slow, sweet, and steady, unlike you and Furuya! And I still can't believe you two did...that!" Eijun felt queasy just thinking about his two best friends engaging in sexual activities, and from the grim look on Ryousuke's face, who had been sitting in between Furuya and Haruichi, he definitely wasn't too delighted learning about his younger brother's sex life.

"Haruichi...I'm horrified with what I've just learned about you." Ryousuke's tone was thick, almost sickened by what he'd discovered about his younger brother. Eijun could only hope that he didn't cause a downfall in his best friends' relationship from asking all those personal questions, most of which had become very inappropriate when Ryousuke suggested they "turn it up" a notch, as they waited for Kuramochi and Miyuki to come back.

Haruichi's face was blazing red, the embarrassment growing more and more as his older brother and Eijun kept the topic burning alive by speaking every thought that came to their mind. At least Kuramochi wasn't here to rub salt to the wound, or else, he'd never be able to look his fielding partner in the eye, and God forbid if Zono found out about it; the first-baseman was his roommate and partially acted like he was his parent by telling him the whole,"abstinence is the way to go", as if he hadn't heard it from Ryousuke or his parents dozens of times when entering high school.

"Aniki -" Haruichi started, but was quickly interrupted by Ryousuke clicking his tongue in annoyance. "Don't "aniki" me, Haruichi. We'll talk about this in the morning, for now, you three get to bed." To Eijun, the prominent frown on the third-year's face looked more sullen at how he'd reacted to the news than infuriated at his little brother not telling him about it.

He swallowed the lump in his throat as he watched his smaller best friend mutter something under his breath about his brother being unfair, shrugging Furuya's hand off his shoulder as he stood from the bed, keeping control of his emotions as he calmly walked out of the room with Furuya trailing close behind him, leaving Eijun all alone in a room with a ticking time bomb that could blow up at any moment if he said one thing out of line.

He felt sorry for Kuramochi; he'd ruined his night by upsetting both Kominatos, with one being his boyfriend and the other his partner on the field. From what he had conjectured from earlier, his roommate had planned to spend the night making love with his boyfriend, not trying to get the cold shoulder and silent treatment from him.

He had nothing else to do here, figuring he should leave the fuming Ryousuke alone to cool down, and that's what he did. He couldn't do anything to make the situation any better, always ending up causing more problems for people along the way; from his parents having to pay for the things that his baseball scholarship didn't cover, Chris-senpai always having to look out for him when his grades started taking critical hits from all the naps he took in class to feel rejuvenated, to causing a discordant between the Kominato brothers, though, he always knew the person, whom he burdened with never ending problems, was Kazuya.

The walk back to the dorm he shared with Kazuya was silent and lonely; the moon was hidden away by the fog, not a single star shining in the darkened sky for him to make a wish upon. None of this would ever have happened if he had said no to Kataoka's request, claiming he wouldn't be able to do it because it would cause problems for the team.

Those haunting words still echoed in his head,"If you fail, Sawamura, Miyuki may just end up killing himself." saying no to the coach's request would have been like going straight up to Kazuya during practice and straight up telling him, with a broad smile, that he wouldn't care if he killed himself. He couldn't ever imagine doing that to Kazuya, his captain, his catcher, his friend, and more significantly, his boyfriend.

"Eijun!" His morbid thoughts were broken by a familiar voice calling out for him down the path, a smile finding its way to his face as Kazuya's face came into view, illuminated by the dorm lights. He couldn't quite say why, but his feet suddenly started to pull him forward in a mad sprint to go wrap his arms around his boyfriend and snuggle his face into his broad chest. And that's what the did, nearly knocking Kazuya off balance in the process, though, he could see the traces of a smile slowly creep up on the taller boy's lips, finding it hard to be mad at him.

"I thought you were in Youichi's room?" Eijun frowned, glad his face was hidden in the older boy's chest as he started to recall that he'd accidentally caused drama; Kazuya didn't need to know all the details at the moment, just that Furuya and Haruichi were probably going to end up getting dragged into Kataoka's office on account of their poor performances sometime before the game with Teito to resolve their issues or risk getting benched.

"I got tired and wanted to go to bed early," He lied through his teeth, knowing full well he'd be caught as he didn't have the key and the room was mainly locked. "Good thing I forgot to lock the room. I hope nobody ransacked our stuff." Kazuya laughed, the skittish look on Eijun's face going undetected. It settled his nerves to see the catcher cracking a joke about forgetting to do a simple task. If this was any other day, Kazuya would have freaked out over it and then jumped all over Eijun's case by asking why he hadn't reminded him to lock the damn door.

"You seem cheerful," Eijun started carefully, raising a brow at the catcher's new found happiness. "It's almost unnerving..." He mumbled the last part, earning a pinch to his cheek from the older boy. "Let's just say me and Youichi had a nice talk~" Kazuya's tone was light and genuine, causing Eijun to have more questions than answers. He wanted to stay in the loop of his boyfriend's social life without coming across too demanding or that he didn't trust him to spend time with other people; he spent most of his free time with Kazuya, more than any of his other friends, and to say that he didn't like the closeness would be a lie.

Pushing himself off of the catcher's chest, pouting slightly at the vague replies Kazuya gave him, he was about to make his escape when he felt a pair of hands caressing his cheeks, Kazuya's face looming in closer to his, breath hot on his face. "Don't tell me you're jealous of Youichi? You've got absolutely nothing to worry about, silly." Their noses brushed against each others in an affectionate nuzzle. In the romantic shoujo manga's he'd read, this would have been where the guy would lean in and kiss the crying girl and make her believe that he loved her. Their life wasn't a dramatized, romance manga, though. He'd read a few popular BL mangas, but as soon as he discovered a sex scene, he shut them almost immediately.

Unlike Kazuya, he was still unsure of his own sexuality. He was attracted to the older boy and liked the slow pacing of their relationship, but he wasn't sure if he could look at another guy on an opposing team and think that he was hot. He was too embarrassed to ask Kazuya any questions pertaining to sexuality or even sex in general, not wanting him to laugh at him and call him an idiot for not having his life in check.

He supposed he could always talk to his mom about it, but he couldn't risk it; Kazuya had once told him that his father would disown him if he found out he was gay and he'd heard all those hurtful, homophobic voice-mails, just imagining asking his own family about it, even though they had said they'd support him no matter who he liked, but what if they were just saying that because they didn't want Kazuya to think they were rude?

"C'mon, let's get to bed, I'm exhausted." While Kazuya was going to have a good night's rest, he wasn't so sure his night was going to be so peaceful with his unnerving thoughts about his sexuality and what would happen if he worked up enough courage to ask his family about it but they didn't except him? Where would he go for the holidays? What would become of his future if he couldn't go home to the countryside and visit without the whole town knowing he was disowned by his family?

He hated how he over thought all the simple matters in his life.

* * *

><p>"Ryou-san, I'm back," Kuramochi was greeted with silence from his boyfriend as he entered the room, noting Ryousuke was sitting on his bed, still dressed in his regular attire, rather than one of the t-shirts that swallowed up his tiny frame, looking disgruntled. He definitely wasn't going to be doing any "catching up" with Ryousuke tonight. Whenever the older boy was in one of his moods, sex was out of the question, and Kuramochi wasn't one to push him into it.<p>

"What's gotten you all agitated?" He sighed, settling down next to Ryousuke. He tried to wrap an arm around his waist to pull him in closer, though, he was rejected almost instantly when the ex-second-baseman recoiled. "If you don't tell me, I can't do anything to help..." For the first time in his life, Kuramochi was left with an uncanny feeling in the deep pits of his stomach that there was nothing he could do to help his boyfriend.

Ryousuke's eyes were fully opened, vivid cerise orbs lacking their usual fierceness; slightly puffy and reddened...had he been crying? If so, what about? Did he accidentally upset him somehow? "Ryou-san, please, tell me..." The worry was eating him alive; he had never wanted to see this side of Ryousuke ever again; the first time was losing to Inashiro, then waking up the morning after and getting a slap in the face from reality as they saw Inashiro on the news and in the paper.

"Haruichi and I got into a little spat over what he's allowed to do in his relationship," Ryousuke explained, expecting Kuramochi to back him up on his opinion, though, the shortstop had a different view.

"I'm not saying you're wrong for being upset, Ryou-san, or maybe I'm just being biased because I love you, but...Haruichi is old enough to decide for himself what he wants to do with Furuya; it's his relationship and I do think you should be more supportive of them." He knew it wasn't fair of him to say such things - he was Ryousuke's boyfriend, not his father - but he needed the other to hear it. He doubted their parents knew anything about what Haruichi and Furuya were up to when things escalated, and so it was up to Ryousuke to talk to his little brother about it.

"Did you give the same pep-talk to Miyuki earlier, hmm?" Ryousuke wanted him to talk, and so he shouldn't hear him sputter any bullshit excuses about what he'd discussed with the catcher; the boy needed help and not just from two people, unaware of the fact that a certain pitcher had blabbed to his best friends about the same issue, when the team had gone on a week-long trip to the inn. "Miyuki needs help, Ryou-san," The feebleness in his voice made him feel so childish, but he couldn't conjure up the strength to stomach the thought of his best friend mutilating his own skin and - God, he tried to avoid thinking about it - taking his own life.

"I don't know what to do, Ryou-san...I talked to him during our lunch break and...and those scars, God, there were so many of them on his skin..." He could have rambled on about it, but after being gently pulled downwards, head landing on Ryousuke's chest, the sound on his boyfriend's heart beating soothing his paranoid mind.

"Youichi, you're a good friend to Miyuki, and I'm sure he appreciates it. For now, just get some sleep." Ryousuke murmured, fingers combing through his boyfriend's messy, greasy hair, noting Kuramochi probably had missed his chance to take a shower when he was roaming the campus with Kazuya. "Hey, Ryou-san?" Kuramochi must get lonely being in the room all by himself, people coming and going as they pleased, but never staying long enough to keep the loneliness away. "You want me to stay in here with you for awhile? I'm sure that coach won't mind , just as long as you control yourself." If it helped Kuramochi sleep tonight, then so be it, he'd stay with him for as long as he needed.

* * *

><p><strong>So now Youichi and Ryou-san know!<strong>

**It's _finally _complete...after all these months of procrastinating and trying to write, I finally got it finished before I went back to school. :'D (I'm in college now, hooray!) **

**To all the people who've reviewed, followed, and added this story to your favorites, you all are the best! Before I go back to school, I'll try to pump out one more chapter. :)**


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